Twin Sabers
by The Nova Scribes
Summary: Welcome to life on Yavin 4...from a different point of view. My name is Aln-Mai. You think it's all about those twins? Think again...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The Jedi Academy on Yavin 4, Master Skywalker, Jacen, Jaina, Tenel Ka, Lowbacca, Em TeeDee, and any other recognizable characters and terms belong to George Lucas and/or Kevin J. Anderson. We are not Mary Sueing, Marty Samming, or in any other way trying to control Lucas's characters. It is inevitable, however, that some of them make some sort of appearance, due to the fact that they also live on Yavin 4. You can't exactly drive through Hollywood and not see some famous person.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter One  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
Aln-Mai Tekmi whirled and caught the blow aimed for his thigh with the stun rod. His face was dripping with sweat, and his black hair hung in his eyes, partially obscuring his vision. He blew his hair back as he continued to fight his opponent. He strained against the other stun rod, and grimaced as his opponent quickly spun and scored a hit on his forearm.  
  
He had been training with stun rods for only a few days, but Aln-Mai was already doing well. At least, that's what he had thought until Master Skywalker decided to personally test his abilities.  
  
Aln-Mai switched his grip on the stun rod, and stood back, waiting for an assault by Master Skywalker. The Jedi Master swung high, aiming for Aln-Mai's head. Aln-Mai parried and struck back at Master Skywalker, aiming for his left side. His swing was blocked immediately, and Master Skywalker followed up with three successive swings at his legs and torso. Aln-Mai caught them all, and swung a hard two-handed blow at Master Skywalker's unprotected right shoulder. His teacher danced backward, his weapon held low in a defensive position. Aln-Mai attacked from the left, slashing down at the Jedi Master's right calf. As soon as the stun rod began to drop, Aln-Mai altered his aim. He gave a shout of delight when his stun rod connected with the Jedi Master's wrist, which abruptly changed to a cry of chagrin as he received a blow on the neck--a fatal strike in a real battle.  
  
"Very good," Master Skywalker said, deactivating the stun rod. "You've come a long way in a short time. I'd say you're getting close to constructing your own lightsaber." Aln-Mai's head came up in an expression of delight.  
  
"But," Master Skywalker said, holding up a hand, "I want you to keep practicing for at least one more week more with stun rods."  
  
Aln-Mai's respectful bow hid his disappointment. "Yes, Master Skywalker. Thank you for your instruction today."  
  
"You're welcome," Master Skywalker said graciously. "Now, why don't you get something to eat before continuing? A Jedi must always be energetic."  
  
"Yes, Master Skywalker." Aln-Mai switched off the stun rod he was holding and handed it over to the Jedi Master. He sighed, and headed out of the practice arena and into one of the many corridors inside the Great Temple. He had wanted for so long to make his own lightsaber, to feel the power of a refined weapon in his hand. Aln-Mai pushed the vision away. Master Skywalker had told him to wait, and so he would wait.  
  
He entered the cafeteria and walked over to the food line. He served himself some unidentifiable glop and sat down by himself. He was a loner, really. Nobody had ever attempted to befriend him, but Aln-Mai was fine by himself. He admitted that although the phrase, "Strength in numbers," had always had merit, being in numbers should never encourage weakness of the individual. Besides, ever since he had left his parents, he had been on his own.  
  
His parents. Sometimes he wished he was back with them on Malastare. His mother and father were rather poor, and Aln-Mai had had very little chance of being successful. That was, until a passing trader had stopped by the house in search of an old friend who used to live there. His mother and father had let him stay for a day, although it strained their meager food supplies. What no one had been expecting was what the trader had discovered in the house, or rather, in Aln-Mai.  
  
The trader, who had made stops at the famous Jedi Academy, had recognized the Force in Aln-Mai. He had been potting plants outside when a pot broke off its stand. Aln-Mai's reaction had been so fast that the trader said later he could have sworn that Aln-Mai had known it was going to happen. The trader pointed out that unnaturally fast reflexes was a sign of the Force, and that Aln-Mai had potential to become a Jedi. The trader was willing to take Aln-Mai to the Academy, but Aln-Mai would have to work off the fare. Aln-Mai's mother and father, seeing the opportunity for a better life for their son, had agreed to let Aln-Mai attend the fabled school of the Jedi.  
  
Aln-Mai sat down and began to eat, still thinking about how he had come to this fantastic place. Aln-Mai had left on the trader's ship, and for two weeks, the trader gave him various maintenance jobs to do. Aln-Mai was no technical whiz, but he had a knack for puzzles, and he was perceptive. He rarely forgot anything. After many replaced parts, tune- ups, and sidestops, the trader had dropped Aln-Mai off at the Jedi Academy. After a brief exchange of words with Master Skywalker, the teacher at the Academy, the trader had handed him a small box and immediately departed. Aln-Mai had been accepted by Master Skywalker and for five years, he had training vigorously in the Jedi arts.  
  
The one thing he loved to do more than anything else was pore over the extensive records at the Jedi Academy of the history of the Jedi Order, all the way back to the founding of the Order. He had studied the individual lives of many Jedi and Sith, including Darth Sidious (more commonly known as Emperor Palpatine), Darth Maul, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mace Windu, Count Dooku, Yoda, and other great Masters of the Force, both evil and good.  
  
Aln-Mai slurped up the last of the bland-tasting food and placed his tray in the sanitary cleaner. He trudged through the corridors aimlessly, and found himself at the entrance to the Great Temple that led out to the jungle of Yavin 4. He smiled to himself and began to stretch.  
  
Aln-Mai's concentration on the Force had been extremely loyal. The one thing that had always haunted him throughout his youth on Malastare was his being short and skinny and easily harassed by local gangs. However, when Aln-Mai had hit upon his growth spurt, he had transformed into a tall, slender, muscular young man. It was not enough for him, though.  
  
Aln-Mai had always dreamt of being the best athlete wherever he went. Now, with the use of the Force to aid him, he had honed his body to the brink of perfection. For one full year, he had concentrated on the use of the Force as a physical aid in battle. He was extremely devoted to any project he undertook, and always worked harder for the extra fruits of his labor, and his single-minded training in the Force had paid off. Aln-Mai prided himself on being the most able body in the temple in terms of outright ability...except for Master Skywalker, of course.  
  
Aln-Mai walked out a way from the temple and looked up. There was a ledge some twenty feet above the entrance of the doorway. He took a deep breath, concentrated deeply on the Force, and leapt straight up. He soared above the entrance and past a window in which he glimpsed another student resting. He performed a flip and landed squarely on the ledge, panting only slightly.  
  
He looked up again, and saw another ledge, this one roughly thirty feet above him. The temple itself was several hundred feet tall, and Aln-Mai was only scaling a small portion of it's height. He concentrated once more, and again he leapt. He soared past the observation window in which he glimpsed Master Skywalker looking out at the dense jungle. The view streamed by, but Aln-Mai's ascent began to slow. He concentrated fully upon the Force, using it to propel him upward. He realized he was going to fall just short of the ledge, and so improvised on the spot. He grabbed the edge of the protrusion and hauled himself up. He sat, wheezing slightly, but exhilarated. He loved the life of the Jedi. It seemed nothing could tarnish the happiness that Aln-Mai felt.  
  
Aln-Mai returned to his quarters after a brisk run through the jungle surrounding the Massassi Temple, and took a brief shower. He was just putting his plain brown jumpsuit on when Tionne, another teacher at the Jedi Academy walked in. She fixed Aln-Mai with a penetrating stare. Aln-Mai detected a glimmer in her eyes...sympathy?...sadness? Aln-Mai was immediately suspicious, with a growing dread in the pit of his stomach.  
  
"Come with me," Tionne said, ushering Aln-Mai out the door. She walked silently ahead of him, taking him up to the higher levels of the Temple, past rooms Aln-Mai had never been in. Storage lockers lined some of the corridors, and several rooms had abandoned equipment in them from when the Rebel Alliance had occupied the small jungle moon. She strode into a room...the same room that Aln-Mai had seen Master Skywalker meditating in when he had scaled the Temple only a few hours before. Master Skywalker was sitting on a ledge that was raised up several feet from the floor, and tall windows at the far end of the room overlooked the lush jungle moon.  
  
"Come in, Aln-Mai," Master Skywalker said. Again, Aln-Mai detected a note of compassion in his voice.  
  
"I will be in the hanger, preparing a shuttle, Master Skywalker," Tionne said. The Jedi Master nodded, and she left silently.  
  
"What's going on?" Aln-Mai asked in a suspicious voice, forgetting his respect for the Jedi Master. "I mean, what's with all the sadness and secretiveness? And why is Master Tionne getting a shuttle ready?"  
  
"Sit down, Aln-Mai," Master Skywalker said firmly. Aln-Mai bowed his head and strode to the opposite end of the long room. He sat down cross-legged next to Master Skywalker on the ledge. He performed a quick Jedi relaxation technique, then faced Master Skywalker.  
  
"Things change, Aln-Mai," Master Skywalker began, staring out at the jungle. "Our lives change, and we have little control over many events that are painful for us. You may have noticed this in your studies. The reason I summoned you here is to tell you that one of these events has happened in your family. The shuttle that Tionne is preparing is for mine and your trip to Malastare." The Jedi Master's face took an unmistakable look of sadness and weariness. "There's been a death in your family."  
  
Aln-Mai sucked in his breath, horror written all over his face.  
  
"Your mother has died," Master Skywalker said. 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Two  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
The days in which Aln-Mai Tekmi spent journeying to Malastare were empty. Looking back, Aln-Mai couldn't even remember the conversation that Master Skywalker had tried to engage him in. He didn't remember doing small tasks in the cramped shuttle, or sleeping, or anything. All that Aln-Mai could really remember was that he had been in shock. Utter and complete shock. It only stopped when he walked down the ramp into the spaceport on Malastare. The descending sun lit up the horizon like crimson, and the temperature was growing cooler. His thoughts cleared, and he breathed in the industrial air, remembering the tint of durasteel that lingered in the air. The methane lakes, the rocky landscape.oh, yes, this was his home. Then Aln-Mai remembered why he was here.  
  
Master Skywalker escorted him through the spaceport. Apparently the Jedi Master was not a non-entity, for some patrons were throwing frightened looks at the distinguished man, the man who defeated the Death Star, defeated Darth Vader, and defeated the dark side of the Force. His reputation must have been somewhat exaggerated though, Aln-Mai decided, as some people actually ran at the sight of the lightsaber hanging from Luke Skywalker's belt.  
  
They caught a tram from the spaceport to a small township outside one of the industrial fabrication facilities. Master Skywalker rented a speeder and took them across marked landscape, laughingly dubbed residential, Aln-Mai thought. He motioned for Master Skywalker to stop when they reached a familiar outcropping of rock that overshadowed a beaten path of dirt. Aln-Mai swung out of the speeder, and wound up the path, stopping at the little cottage that he had called home.  
  
Cottage wasn't really the word, Aln-Mai decided. His being away from home for so long had somewhat altered his perception of the small building. Hovel was a better word to describe it. The shabby walls made out of materials that Aln-Mai had never heard of, and the gardens barely stayed alive in the unforgiving climate. Aln-Mai straightened, pulling his tunic smooth. He walked up to the door, took a deep breath, and knocked.  
  
The door opened a crack, and Aln-Mai recognized the drawn face of his father, Geral-Ryn.  
  
"Dad?" Aln-Mai whispered.  
  
The next thing he knew, he was hauled off his feet in a hug, which he returned wholeheartedly. His father whispered something he couldn't hear, but it didn't matter to Aln-Mai. They released each other, and Aln-Mai coughed uncomfortably.  
  
"Father, I would like to introduce you to Jedi Master Luke Skywalker," Aln-Mai addressed his mentor formally.  
  
"I'm sorry for your loss," Master Skywalker said, extending a hand.  
  
"Thank you, Master Jedi," Geral-Ryn replied, and Aln-Mai was surprised at the use of the ancient greeting of the Jedi. 'Master Jedi' was a phrase used back in the time of the Old Republic. Aln-Mai was astonished his father knew about it.  
  
"I think that we'd best talk inside," Master Skywalker said. "Private conversations are most effective inside four walls."  
  
"Yes, yes, come in, come in," Geral-Ryn said, ushering them both inside. They sat around the table in the center of the room, Aln-Mai's father closing and locking the door behind him.  
  
"How, Dad? How did she die?" Aln-Mai asked before he could properly phrase the question.  
  
Geral-Ryn sighed. His face took on a note of anguish. "She was killed in an accident. A line that transported hyperdrive coolant burst, and she inhaled it." The look on his face was growing more grieving by the moment. "She didn't live much longer, and the only thing I could do was comfort her." He hung his head. "I didn't have enough money to pay for medical services, not even an anesthetic."  
  
Aln-Mai was stricken with horror. Hyperdrive coolant was extremely toxic, especially in its gaseous form. When inhaled, it ate away at the brain, causing paralysis, and inflicting damage on nerve tissue, causing pain in all bodily extremities. The only way to cure it was to immediately treat the person with immersion in a bacta tank, but Aln-Mai knew that his father hadn't near enough money for a commodity like that.  
  
"The funeral is supposed to be tomorrow," Geral-Ryn added morosely.  
  
Master Skywalker had absorbed all of this information with a thoughtful expression on his face. Now, he spoke.  
  
"Isn't hyperdrive coolant always handled with extreme safety precautions?" Master Skywalker asked.  
  
Geral-Ryn nodded glumly.  
  
"And isn't the company responsible heavily fined if there is a leak like the one you mentioned?" Master Skywalker asked.  
  
"Yes, and they were. Over a million credits to clean it up," Geral-Ryn said.  
  
"Did they ascertain what the problem was?" Master Skywalker asked.  
  
"Wear on the tubing. It's supposed to be replaced regularly, but it wasn't in this case, and as I understand it, the fellow in charge of maintenance in that section is looking for a new job," Geral-Ryn said, with a slightly satisfied look in his eyes.  
  
"I see," Master Skywalker said. "Well, I'll go look for someplace for me to stay the night while you two . . ."  
  
"No, no, no! Stay with us! I'd rather you would anyway, seeing as this is the time when a lot of the gangs are out," Geral-Ryn said.  
  
"If it's not too much trouble," Master Skywalker said.  
  
"No, none at all," Geral-Ryn insisted.  
  
Aln-Mai slept in his own room that night, and dreamt fitfully of the picture that his father had drawn for him, of the tubing bursting right in his mother's face, of her screams echoing in his mind, and of his father weeping uncontrollably at her side. When the dawn arrived the next day, Aln-Mai was not rested.  
  
The funeral passed much as the trip to Malastare had. Aln-Mai was strangely detached from the proceedings as old friends spoke kind things of his mother. After everyone had left, Aln-Mai took his father to the speeder, and asked Master Skywalker to take him back. He wanted to buy a couple of things in town, and he would catch a taxi. Master Skywalker somberly agreed, and Aln-Mai watched his father disappear into the distance as he headed into the marketplace.  
  
Aln-Mai had really no intention of buying anything, he just wanted to absorb some old memories. He wandered into the shops, exchanged brief words with some older people who recognized him, and bought a couple food items for his father with the small amount of credits Aln-Mai had collected in trading various things at the Jedi Academy. He actually had quite a bit of money, but Aln-Mai had come to look at money as a small thing, just another means of barter.  
  
He stepped into a deserted alley to put his things in a small satchel, and continued down the alley, sticking to side streets. He knew that the gangs didn't come out in daytime, at least rarely. So it was with a false sense of confidence that he continued on his way home.  
  
As he rounded a corner, boys dropped down from the roofs above him, quickly surrounding him. He groaned inwardly; he should have been able to sense them coming. Not only that, he recognized this particular gang: the Dark Nebulon. This gang had harassed him as a child. Their leader, Huldon, had been the biggest of the lot, and therefore took a childish delight in beating him. But, Aln-Mai thought to himself, that was a long time ago.  
  
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the little Tekmi brat," Huldon sneered. "You've gotten quite a bit bigger."  
  
"And you've not gotten any smarter," Aln-Mai retorted, not bothering to let him tease him. He had the Force, and he was not a little brat.  
  
Huldon glared at him. "I think that you've got to be taught a lesson in manners," he said threateningly.  
  
"I don't think that's a good idea, Huldon, especially since you can't touch me," Aln-Mai said, beginning to concentrate on the Force.  
  
"Oh, really? Then what about this?" Huldon cried, as he swung a huge fist at Aln-Mai's face.  
  
The blow never landed.  
  
Aln-Mai, using the Force to increase his speed, had sidestepped the punch. Huldon blinked, wondering where Aln-Mai had gone. He looked around, spotting him standing three feet left of where he had been before.  
  
"How'd...you...?" Huldon stuttered dumbly.  
  
"Don't underestimate the power of the Force," Aln-Mai said simply, concentrating again.  
  
"Force this!" Huldon howled, and rushed Aln-Mai. Aln-Mai made a tremendous vertical leap, landing on the roof of a nearby building. Huldon's expression was now one of disbelief. He stood there with his mouth hanging open in shock. Then he snapped out of it, and pulled a concealed blaster from inside his vest.  
  
Aln-Mai realized the situation had become slightly more serious at that point. He dodged the blast that Huldon sent at him. He used the Force to yank the blaster out of Huldon's hand, and sent it skittering away with a push from the Force.  
  
Now Huldon was hopping mad. "Blast the little freak!" he screamed, his eyes bulging. The rest of the gang drew identical blasters in unison, and Aln-Mai decided it was time to go. With a burst of speed drawn from the Force, he leapt away across the top of the buildings, heading for home as fast as he could go.  
  
When he arrived home, he stopped to catch his breath. That had been close. He had underestimated his enemy. Aln-Mai supposed the bright thing to do would have been to leave the scene immediately, but he couldn't resist the temptation of humiliating Huldon.  
  
As if drawn by his thoughts, the door opened and Master Skywalker looked out at him. He took in his red face and obvious lack of breath with an appraising eye, then folded his arms across his chest.  
  
"Just buying a couple of things, eh?" he said with a small half-smile.  
  
"Well, I suppose I exaggerated just a bit, Master," Aln-Mai said. "I ran into a couple of old friends who were all too happy to see me. I happened to convince them that they really weren't all that happy to see me after all."  
  
"I see," Master Skywalker said, nodding. "Well, why don't you come in and join us? I was just telling your father that we would be going this afternoon."  
  
Aln-Mai's face changed into an expression of dismay. "We're leaving so early? But we just got here!"  
  
"We came for your mother's funeral, Aln-Mai. Now it is time for us to return to Yavin. Come in and say good-bye," Master Skywalker said firmly.  
  
Aln-Mai sighed and trudged in. His father was bustling around, looking for anything he could give Aln-Mai before he left.  
  
"Here, Father," Aln-Mai said, handing him the satchel of food. "I guess I have to go."  
  
His father's face was sad, but he took the satchel nonetheless, and embraced his son.  
  
"I'll write soon. I promise," Aln-Mai said as he hugged his father close. So many memories, and so little time to share them.  
  
"Be good. Don't forget where you came from," his father said, releasing him from the embrace. "And may the Force be with you."  
  
"Thank you, Father," Aln-Mai said. "Good-bye." He turned and walked out the door, and clambered into the speeder with Master Skywalker. Aln-Mai waved at his father as the vehicle picked up speed and the small house disappeared from view. 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Three  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
Aln-Mai jumped out of the speeder and waited while Master Skywalker returned it to the small chubby Rodian who had rented it to them. They caught a return tram to the spaceport in which their shuttle was docked. They both climbed aboard the shuttle silently, neither saying a word to the other as they completed the pre-flight checks.  
  
"Malastare 571, this is Luke Skywalker, requesting planetary departure clearance," the Jedi Master said, having activated communications.  
  
"Luke Skywalker, your position locked-in. Clearance granted. Maintain vector 86.2 for departure," a toneless voice replied.  
  
"Roger, vector 86.2," Master Skywalker said, keying in the numbers and lifting off gently. They soared away from the spaceport, away from Aln-Mai's home, his father, and his childhood. The view receded as the planet dwindled into a monstrous orb hanging in space.  
  
"Hyperspace coordinates locked in," Master Skywalker's words intruded on Aln-Mai's thoughts. "Engaging hyperdrive." The Jedi Master's hands pulled down a lever.  
  
Nothing happened.  
  
Master Skywalker frowned, and pulled at the lever again. Still nothing happened.  
  
"Check the hyperdrive, Aln-Mai," Master Skywalker said, still working the controls.  
  
Aln-Mai undid his crash webbing and dashed to the back of the shuttle. After a brief moment of struggle against the slightly rusty hinges, he pried open the access hatch to reveal...  
  
Nothing.  
  
"The hyperdrive's gone, Master Skywalker! Somebody stole it!" Aln-Mai reported.  
  
"Stole it? But who would do that?" the Jedi Master wondered. The answer came two seconds later in a hail of laser fire.  
  
"I've got you now, you little Tekmi brat!" Huldon's voice sounded over the comm system. Aln-Mai groaned inwardly.  
  
"I take it that's one of your 'friends'?" Master Skywalker asked, going into evasive maneuvers.  
  
"How did you ever guess, Master? I'll find another place for us to land, as it seems we've worn out our welcome here."  
  
Aln-Mai pulled up navigation charts, scanning them quickly for a nearby planet where they could make repairs. A small industrial planet caught his eye, less than two parsecs away. He glanced at the readout--Dibon.  
  
"Here, Master. A small, out-of-the-way planet called Dibon," Aln-Mai quoted the coordinates as Master Skywalker fed them into the navigation computer, still dodging laser fire.  
  
"What do you plan to do about Huldon?" Aln-Mai asked.  
  
"There's a small lever in a box to you left. Near the top bulkhead," Master Skywalker said. Aln-Mai looked up, and spotted a small box with a encryption pad.  
  
"What's the code?" Aln-Mai asked.  
  
"5-8-9-3-2-3-4."  
  
Aln-Mai punched it in quickly, and the lock released. Aln-Mai yanked the door open to find a red lever labeled, 'IPW.'  
  
"On my signal, pull the lever," Master Skywalker said, jockeying for a position directly ahead of Huldon's pursuing craft.  
  
"Now," he said calmly, and Aln-Mai yanked the lever. The deck rolled slightly, and a brief second later, the laser fire ceased. Aln-Mai peered out the porthole in the back. A small freighter that had been following them drifted away, spinning off-axis.  
  
"What was that?" Aln-Mai asked.  
  
"Ion Pulse Warhead," Master Skywalker said tonelessly. "It doesn't cause any hull damage, but it knocks out all electrical systems. Tionne installed as a means of defense."  
  
Aln-Mai laughed. "A Jedi should always be prepared, correct, Master?"  
  
"Precisely."

* * *

"Kir!"  
  
At the sound of her name, the young Rinaim's right ear twitched, but her eyes did not open. She was reluctant to return to the world of the waking, since she was having a very nice dream about her home planet, and being among all her friends again.  
  
"Kirnatyila of the Ver tribe, get your sorry tail out of bed this instant!"  
  
Kir grumbled in her state of semi-consciousness. "So we're going to dig out the tribal titles, are we?" she mumbled incoherently. She yawned widely, long tongue lolling out of her mouth past a shiny set of ferocious teeth. Then Kir slunk down from her small nest, stretching each of her supple muscles individually. She despaired of putting her sandy-colored coat in order by herself, and so sauntered to her refreshing unit.  
  
"Kir, are you out of your nest yet?" her mother demanded, sticking her head into her daughter's room. "You know we have a meeting with the Xorinian emissaries in a few hours. I don't want us to be late!"  
  
Kir rolled her green eyes as the blowers took care of her mussed fur. She bounded out of unit bright-eyed and awake, before landing on all fours. "Yes, I'm up and about."  
  
Amai of the Ver tribe let out a huffing breath at her daughter. Her glossy brown coat had already been preened to perfection.  
  
"Stand up and walk properly, you are no longer a child. You're going to make your father and I very late with your shenanigans."  
  
Kir straightened to two feet as she was ordered, but her eyes narrowed in an angered frown. "I don't see why I must attend this meeting with you. It will be a long time before I am of any age to be an emissary to these people."  
  
Her mother shook her head impatiently. Her eldest daughter said this every time. "You must learn now, so that your footsteps will fall in with our traditions. Besides, their trade is valuable to our planet. Think of what you are doing for our people by insuring that they have this ore."  
  
"Our people?" Kir's voice was incredulous. "They had not the courage to even attempt to go off-world! Why I had to be born into a tribe of adventurers and starwanderers is beyond me!" She fumed to herself, tail thrashing.  
  
Amai sighed and hung her head. "If that is how you truly see matters, Kir, you are no daughter of mine. Why can't you be more like Cai? She would leap for a chance to attend this meeting. She knows her place in this family, she knows her duty."  
  
Kir turned to lick her shoulder, a gesture of disdain. "So take her. Leave me be. No good will come of this council today, I can tell you that! I have a dark feeling about it. The Xorinians have always given me chills, but today I cannot bear to even look at them."  
  
Amai stamped her foot; it was her telltale sign that she had reached the end of her patience. "You say that about everyone, Kir. You make this kind of protest every time we meet with other ambassadors or representatives. Every time things turn out all right, and this one will turn out right too."  
  
Her daughter looked away from her dark eyes. "I know you are wrong about this time, Mother. It...feels wrong." The first hint of fear that Kir would admit to slipped into her tone. "You and Father shouldn't go, we all shouldn't go."  
  
"Kir, Rinai VII needs this ore to continue work in the factories. Without it, the planet will eventually collapse in economic chaos. It is imperative that we fix relations with these people." Amai implored her daughter, but the young Rinaim wouldn't look at her. At last she shook her head. "Get your bag and be ready to leave in half an hour." She turned on her heel and stalked out, her stiff posture betraying her concealed anger.  
  
Kir shut her eyes for a moment, but the image she had first seen so many nights ago flashed in her mind's eye: her mother and sister, Cai, lying dead in the council hall. And a Xorinian turning towards her, a still-smoking blaster clenched in his hand. The Rinaim shook the vision off, turning and searching her luxurious room for the small bag she always carried with her. She spied it in resting on a chair and quickly slipped the strap over her head, checking to make sure all her knickknacks were inside. Kir was a firm believer in being prepared for everything, from a power outage to an earthquake.  
  
At last she turned to leave her chamber, giving it one final glance. She strongly suspected it would be the last time she saw it.  
  
Rusk, her father, was waiting in the large front hall for the remainder of his family. Cai stood at his side, her ginger-banded fur neatly groomed, her high voice chattering excitedly about something she had learned yesterday. Apparently she had been allowed, at the last moment, to accompany her sibling and her parents to the meeting. Kir felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach. She glanced quickly at the floor to keep her dismay from showing on her face.  
  
Amai finally joined them, composed and ready. She nodded silently to her husband, whose golden eyes seemed to ask an unspoken question. Rusk gestured to their service droid, who chirped his acknowledgement and opened the front door, revealing a waiting speeder that would take them all to the council chambers.  
  
As the four Rinaim settled in and got situated, Kir found herself unconsciously trying to detect any signs of danger. Her senses were on full alert, but there was nothing. She felt unsure whether to believe her dream or not, but it had seemed so real...and why did it still haunt her? She was still trying to justify her fear when the transport slowed to a halt with a brief touch of thrusters.  
  
The place where the meeting of the Rinaim and the Xorinians was located in was a bustling hub of one of the largest cities. It was nestled right between gaudy shopfronts, nearly inconspicuous to those who passed by, the door inside a small alcove. As such, it was commonly overlooked, but the position ensured that not many people would find it. Also, guards for both sides could take up surveillance in the busy crowd without attracting any attention.  
  
Kir was distracted by a lone vender hawking some curiously-shaped fruits as her family entered the small alcove. Something tingled along her spine, and Kir shuddered, hurrying to rejoin them, slipping in right behind her father. His black body hid much from her view, but something about the atmosphere of the room seemed wrong as the Rinaim mounted the steps that opened into a large area dominated by a long table with many chairs.  
  
The Xorinians were already seated and waiting, their usually expressionless faces blank as always. Their moods were conveyed through the smells they gave off, and right now Kir could tell that they were smugly satisfied with themselves. There was something else, but it was muted. Hatred? Deception? She did not know.  
  
"Greetings, honored representatives of the Xorinians," Rusk began grandly, performing the complicated hand gesture that was a symbol of greeting among the other race. "We are pleased that we could meet with you."  
  
Grorrl, the leader, stood and raised both hands, all seven fingers extended outward as he presented his 'claws' in the Rinaim gesture of respect. "We are even more delighted that we could accommodate you," he said. Kir's nose wrinkled slightly as his odor became one of triumph. "You see," the Xorinian went on, "we have a little proposition for you."  
  
Kir's ears swiveled, then laid back against her skull. Her claws instinctually came unsheathed, and her hackles began to rise. This wasn't right. Never had she been so sure.  
  
Rusk was wary, but he was not on guard yet. "I'm sure we can reach some sort of agreement..." he hedged.  
  
Grorrl continued, "We know that your planet relies on our ore to survive. You won't find prices as low as ours anywhere else. What we want is simple: we want you to contact your government and tell them that in exchange for all the ore they could ever want, we wish to take over." He sat back, exuding smugness.  
  
Whatever Rusk and Amai had been prepared for, it had not been that. "We're sorry, Grorrl, but we can't do that," Kir's mother said. "Not only are we not authorized--"  
  
It happened even as Kir was in motion. The blaster bolt struck Amai of the Ver tribe squarely in the center of her chest, and she fell in an instant, murdered.  
  
Then everything fell into chaos.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Four  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
"Okay, here's the planetary approach coordinates coming in now, Master Skywalker." Aln-Mai fed in the coordinates to the navi-computer. "Planetary control is available on all bandwidths. Go ahead," Aln-Mai prompted.  
  
"Dibon Planetary Control, this is Luke Skywalker on approach. My shuttle was ambushed and our hyperdrive was stolen. Request permission to land and make repairs," the Jedi Master said as if announcing the weather on Coruscant.  
  
A moment passed, then a mechanical voice--a translated voice, Aln-Mai thought--replied.  
  
"Luke Skywalker, you have permission to land at the spaceport at these coordinates." The communications display blinked the numbers as Aln-Mai computed them.  
  
"Looks like a spaceport just outside a major industrial complex. We should probably be able to get a hyperdrive at a fairly reasonable price," Aln-Mai mused out loud.  
  
"Well, strap yourself in as we land. I'm not sure just exactly how much damage we took," Master Skywalker said.  
  
Aln-Mai obediently crossed to his seat and buckled the crash webbing. Master Skywalker brought the shuttle in for a relatively soft landing in a hangar adjacent to the main bazaar.  
  
"Should we lock down the shuttle, Master Skywalker? We don't want anything to be stolen again," Aln-Mai said nervously.  
  
"I'll lock the hangar. Why don't you go to the marketplace and see if you can find someone who specializes in shuttle parts?" his teacher suggested.  
  
"Good idea, Master. See you in a minute." Aln-Mai strode out of the hangar, heading through the corridors. As he approached the main bazaar, a prickling feeling went up his spine. Something was wrong. He turned around to go back and tell Master Skywalker, but he was right behind him, with a wary look on his face.  
  
"There is a disturbance in the Force," he said, gazing out at the market.  
  
Master Skywalker strode into the bazaar, looking around at the bustle. Aln-Mai followed close behind. Aln-Mai sensed that something was out of place, something felt...hostile. The Jedi Master followed the feeling to a small door that led to stairs leading to an upper level. They had just begun to approach the door when a small ball of fur went tumbling down the stairs and out of the door, just as a massive explosion erupted at the top of the stairs. The furry creature had just begun to rise when the door slammed shut and sealed with a click.  
  
The felinoid alien pounded the door, growling and screaming at the top of its lungs. Aln-Mai was uncertain whether or not to approach the cat-like being. Master Skywalker, on the other hand, walked toward the creature. He sensed the enraged sorrow and helplessness in the being, and cautiously knelt before it, where it lay huddled in a miserable ball by the locked door.  
  
"Can you understand me?" Luke Skywalker asked slowly. "Are you hurt?"

* * *

Kir could not think. She did not want to think, she merely wanted to react. She wanted to vent her anger, her frustration, her loss on the Xorinians. Her mother, Amai, killed. Then she had watched Cai fall beside her. Blaster fire was whizzing around the room, ricocheting off the walls. She had watched the Xorinian that had killed her family turned towards her, as she had forseen in her dream.  
  
Then her father had intervened, slamming into his daughter so hard that she had gone tumbling, unable to recover her balance. Kir had slid across the floor as the chamber erupted with carefully timed explosions. She had been singed, but the stairs had taken her swiftly away as her momentum carried her down them.  
  
The Rinaim had collected herself as quickly as she could, intending to charge back up and tear each one of the lying, deceitful Xorinians apart. But the locking mechanism had engaged after her exit, and try as she might, Kir could not get back in. She had beaten on it, moaned and wailed, but it did no good.  
  
Now she lay in a wretched heap, tail wrapped around her in some semblance of comfort. She was alone. So alone. With a harsh sinking feeling, Kir realized that she was an orphan, and that she had no home. She dared not go back to her family's apartments, for the Xorinians doubtless knew where they were. The young Rinaim was not safe.  
  
Kir rocked unconsciously, even as a voice vied for her attention. She did not want to listen to it, and tried to push it away. Vaguely she smelled the scent of a surprised human, before a gentle hand reached out to touch her shoulder. Only then did Kir look up, large green eyes wild and unfocused.  
  
A tall human was crouched beside her, with sandy hair similar to her fur color and sympathetic blue eyes. He repeated his earlier question, "Are you hurt?"  
  
She did not want to respond, and her throat was so locked up that Kir wasn't sure that she could speak if she wished. She settled for shaking her head. Tears began to gather in her eyes.  
  
"Who are you, and what has happened here?" The man's questions caused something to constrict inside her, and Kir bowed her head, looking away as she began to cry. It was something she didn't do very often, and never in the sight of others. She was too proud for that.  
  
The human looked back over his shoulder and spoke to somebody behind him. He told the person to begin asking questions as to Kir's origin. At that, the Rinaim drew a shuddering breath and managed to speak past the lump in her throat.  
  
"I am Kir of the Ver tribe. My parents were emissaries of our homeworld, Rinai VII, here on Dibon. Just now they were betrayed by the Xorinians. My mother and sister were killed before my eyes. I do not know the fate that has taken my father."  
  
The hand on her shoulder tightened, and Kir could feel warmth and strength entering her, comforting her. She did not know how it was done, but it felt right, and she welcomed it. "I am Luke Skywalker," the man said. "Do you have any relatives or friends here you can contact?"  
  
Kir numbly shook her head, attempting without much success to dry her eyes. "No. I have no one, and my tribe is scattered across the galaxies. It would be impossible to find them." A sudden, urgent thought occurred to her. She had to leave Dibon immediately! She was the only free witness to the underhanded dealings of the Xorinians, and now they would be looking for her. Kir pushed her sorrow aside. Shakily she rose to her feet, balance unsteady.  
  
"I must leave," she whispered, more to herself than to Luke Skywalker. "They will find me and kill me for what I know." Kir moved to take a step, but she was so unstable that she nearly fell. Only the quick reaction of the human at her side saved her from another tumble.  
  
"Come with me to my ship. The Xorinians will not find you there," he assured her. His voice caused a tiny spark of calmness to grow in Kir. She could trust this man, everything would be all right...  
  
The young Rinaim nodded, her tail curling around the man's waist unconsciously. He showed no surprise at her action, but merely gestured at a younger human to come with them. Kir took no immediate note of him, nor of her surroundings. The bazaar seemed to darken around her as mind-numbing memories plagued her mind.  
  
"Master, why are we helping her? Shouldn't we give her to the authorities?" Aln-Mai asked.  
  
"You should know better, Aln-Mai," Master Skywalker reprimanded him. "The Jedi are protectors, and she is being hunted by these Xorinians. Besides," Master Skywalker lowered his voice, "she has Jedi potential."  
  
Aln-Mai started at those words, but said nothing. They led the frightened felinoid back to the shuttle and lay her in a compartment.  
  
"Watch her while I get a hyperdrive. I will be back quickly," Master Skywalker instructed.  
  
Aln-Mai nodded, sealing the loading ramp behind Master Skywalker as he departed and engaging the automatic defense laser on the underbelly of the shuttle.  
  
Aln-Mai turned to study the felinoid. She was huddled in a ball, and whimpering to herself. Aln-Mai tried to start a conversation.  
  
"Why did the Xorinians kill your parents?" Aln-Mai realized that it was the wrong question to ask right after he asked it, but the alien being remained silent, as if she hadn't heard him.  
  
Aln-Mai decided it was best to leave her alone, and seating himself on the opposite side of the shuttle, sunk into meditation.  
  
Aln-Mai didn't know how long he was asleep, but he was awoken by a sharp rapping on the hull. He scrambled out of the bunk and lowered the ramp to find...the Xorinians. He recognized the aliens, who were not unknown on Malastare. They were regarded as unsavory dealers, and could understand how the Rinaim were deceived.  
  
Aln-Mai reacted instantly, shutting the ramp again and activating the laser turret underneath to open fire. He dashed over to the communications console and hailed security.  
  
"Dibon Spaceport Security, this is Aln-Mai Tekmi in Hangar 94! We are under attack from Xorinians! We request assistance immediately!"  
  
There was only static.  
  
Aln-Mai watched out the window as the Xorinians took cover underneath containers and behind machinery as they opened fire at the unprotected shuttle hull. He was trapped along with Kir, and they had nowhere to go.  
  
Just then, the hangar door opened and in strode Master Skywalker. With only a brief glance, he assessed the situation and took action.  
  
In a massive pull from the Force, all of the weapons flew out of the hands of the Xorinians. They sailed into the air and landed in a pile at the feet of Master Skywalker. Seeing that Master Skywalker had the situation in hand, Aln-Mai de-activated the laser turret.  
  
"Kill the human!" one of the Xorinians screamed. As the gang surged forward, Master Skywalker drew and ignited his lightsaber. The Xorinians heisitated, eyeing the incandescant green blade warily. Aln-Mai, sensing a battle, opened the ramp and ran down to confront the Xorinians with Master Skywalker.  
  
"You are outnumbered, humans," one of the Xorinians sneered.  
  
"I count two Jedi Knights against seven Xorinians, my friend," Master Skywalker said, still holding the bright green blade. "I think it is you who are outnumbered."  
  
"J-J-Jedi Knights?!" a small Xorinian stuttered. "No one said there would be Jedi guarding the Rinaim emissaries!"  
  
"Shut up, you fool!" the tallest one snarled at him.  
  
Master Skywalker's face became grim. "So, you are the ones who murdered the Rinaim. Security will be along shortly to collect you."  
  
Right on cue, the doors whisked open and two dozen armed security guards piled in.  
  
"But, Master, I hailed security and nobody answered," Aln-Mai said.  
  
"That is because the guard at the comm station had left and come with me. I sensed danger right before I left, so I thought to capture the ones responsible for Kir's parents' deaths."  
  
"I see," Aln-Mai said. "And what about our hyperdrive unit?"  
  
"It's right outside the door. Why don't you get it and install it while our Xorinian friends go with security," Master Skywalker said, still holding the assassins in check with his lightsaber.  
  
Aln-Mai hurried out the door as the guard moved forward and clapped the Xorinians in binders. He stepped outside the door and picked up the bulky hyperdrive unit. He walked back into the hangar just as the guards walked out with Xorinians in tow.  
  
"Well, I'd say we did a thorough clean-up job, Master Skywalker," Aln-Mai said with a smile as he clumped up the shuttle ramp with the hyperdrive.  
  
"Indeed," Master Skywalker agreed, shutting off his lightsaber. 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Five  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
"There, that's got it!" Aln-Mai said, slamming the access hatch. "We're all set now."  
  
"Good," Master Skywalker said, powering up the shuttle. "I'm anxious to get back to Yavin 4."  
  
"Me too," Aln-Mai agreed, sliding into the co-pilot chair and buckling the crash webbing. He glanced over his shoulder at Kir, who was still huddled in the back, crying to herself.  
  
Luke Skywalker followed the trainee's gaze before drawing a deep breath and rising from his seat. "Hold the controls steady." He approached the young Rinaim, drawing so close that she was forced to look up at him. She could not be more than fourteen standard years old, perhaps younger. Fresh tear trails marked her sandy-colored fur.  
  
He knelt in front of her and asked, "You are not safe on Dibon any longer. You know that, and so do I. I can take you somewhere safe, where the Xorinians, should they escape, will never find you. If you like, then you may contact your people and they will come for you. Is that acceptable?"  
  
Kir gazed at him blankly for a moment, as if trying to make sense of his words. Then she formed her answer. "Yess." Her voice took on an accent he assumed belonged to her people, but the Jedi Master still understood.  
  
Luke rose then, and offered her a hand up. "Come and strap in, then. We're leaving immediately." The Rinaim slowly gave him her hand, and he pulled the young being lightly to her feet. She fastened the crash webbing mechanically as Luke took the pilot's seat once more.  
  
Aln-Mai favored him with an unreadable look before relinquishing his hold of the controls. His teacher merely smiled at him before contacting spaceport flight control and requesting clearance beyond the atmosphere. In moments they were on their way, past the clouds and into the cold black of space.  
  
Luke traded a last minute glance with his trainee. Both mentally crossed their fingers as the Jedi Master reached for the hyperdrive control and pulled it. The stars blurred around them and they shot away through the cosmos.

* * *

"She still won't eat?" Luke did not need to hear Aln-Mai's response, the boy's look had said it all. They were not far from Yavin, but the journey had not been the pleasantest. Kir could not be drawn into anything more than light conversation, and she kept to herself, still filled with sadness. "She's letting her sorrow consume her."  
  
Aln-Mai blinked. He wouldn't have said as much, but he knew that a Jedi had to let go of dangerous emotions. And he sensed that the Rinaim's grief could rapidly turn to revenge. "Forgive me if I'm wrong to say this, but what if she turns vengeful?"  
  
His teacher sighed and closed his eyes, steepling his fingers as he thought. "Aln-Mai, how did you overcome your mother's death?"  
  
The young Jedi blinked again. He toyed with the leather headband that kept his unruly hair out of his face before answering. His voice was rough, but he did not cry. "I accepted it. There was nothing I could have done. I realized that to dwell on my pain was to weaken and allow the dark side a foothold. I couldn't bear that, to know I was weak."  
  
The Jedi Master nodded thoughtfully. "Thank you."  
  
Aln-Mai grinned rakishly. "Anytime, Master Skywalker." He turned to go, but a word from Luke stopped him.  
  
"Would you go tell Kir what you just said to me?"  
  
The boy's mouth fell open, but he regained his composure immediately. Skywalker could tell he was loath to do it, seeing as how the Rinaim hadn't even acknowledged his presence once. "As you wish," was all Aln-Mai responded. He spun around and squared his shoulders before marching out of the cockpit.  
  
"Kir?"  
  
Maybe it had all been a dream, just like it had been the last time. Kir twitched but did not make any other sign that she was awake.  
  
"Kir of the Ver tribe, I have something to tell you."  
  
At that, Kir rolled over and muttered, "So we're going to dig out the tribal titles, are we?" She sat up slowly, but a feeling of panic came over her as she looked at her surroundings. No, it hadn't been a dream. Her family was still dead, and she was still alone. She recognized the younger human crouching opposite her as Luke Skywalker's companion. Normally she would never have spoken to one who appeared to be a servant, but he had used her tribal name.  
  
She took in the ragged black hair and gray eyes of the human. He was tall and muscular, but not much older than she. It was only then as she observed him that Kir realized she did not know his name. "Yess?" Her Rinaim accent was creeping back into her speech, a sign that she was highly agitated but trying to hide it.  
  
He settled cross-legged on the floor in front of her before continuing. "My name is Aln-Mai Tekmi. I'm a student of Master Skywalker's at the Jedi Academy on Yavin 4." He paused, as if waiting for some sort of reaction. Kir tried to muster up a suitable one.  
  
"Jedi? You are trraining to become a Jedi? Then yourr Masterr Sskywalkerr iss the one who defeated the Death Sstar?" Kir's eyes widened considerably at that news. Her senses must have truly taken leave of her if she hadn't been able to add up simple facts such as that. She tried to hide her surprise, but knew that she must have failed miserably.  
  
Aln-Mai bobbed his head in an affirmative gesture. "Yes, he did, but he doesn't talk about that much. He wanted me to tell you something."  
  
Kir tried to puzzle out what the great man would have this boy say to her, but she knew not. She just wanted to be left alone. Yet Aln-Mai spoke before she could express her wish.  
  
"The reason the both of us are here, near Dibon, is because we went to Malastare to...to my mother's funeral."  
  
The Rinaim had not been expecting that. "You have just losst yourr motherr too?" Kir laid her ears back against her skull, startled.  
  
Aln-Mai nodded. "Yes...she was killed accidentally, but my family is so poor that we had no money to get her the treatment that could have saved her." Kir thought she saw unshed tears fill his eyes, but he scrubbed them away with the back of his hand.  
  
He was the exact opposite of her, like day and night. Her family had been rich, his impoverished. He had had a home of his own, Kir had moved from space station to space station. He had the hope of being a Jedi, while she had nothing now.  
  
"What doess thiss have to do with me?" she growled, gripping her tail in her hands. "Ssay what you will."  
  
"When she died, I realized that I couldn't have done anything to save her. I also knew that I had to accept her death and not surrender to hatred and revenge. I say all this to tell you that it is possible to overcome sadness like yours. I never had siblings, in fact I never had much of anything, but I suppose that makes everything that much more valuable. Don't give up Kir, don't give in to the darkness. You still do have things worth living for."  
  
The Rinaim regarded him calmly for the whole of two seconds while she absorbed his words. Then her fur began to bristle frighteningly and her tail began to lash back and forth. She unsheathed her claws and bared her teeth fiercely, gratified to see that the young Jedi fell back in surprise.  
  
"I can ssee how it iss for you, Jedi." She deliberately did not use his proper name. "You have a home, a future, because you are what you are. I don't have any of that anymore. I am no more than a piece of dusst adrift in the galaxy." Her claws shrieked against the metal deckplates. Her emerald eyes were wild as she backed away from Aln-Mai.  
  
"And you're wrong, Jedi. I could have ssaved them. I knew it would happen, I knew it. But I could not sstop it...I could not ssee that it was real until too late. What iss there left for me here on this plane of exisstence? Nothing." She retreated into a corner, where Kir rapidly began searching through her woven bag that she always kept at her side.  
  
Aln-Mai could not see what she was doing until it was nearly too late. His Jedi senses screamed at him even as he saw the glint of a small dagger in the Rinaim's hand, intended for her heart. "No!" he cried, focusing quickly on the Force and pulling the weapon forcibly from Kir.  
  
His yell brought Master Skywalker in from the cockpit. "Aln-Mai? Kir? What's going on?"  
  
Kir's anguished yowl forestalled any further conversation. "Why will you not let me go? I no longerr wish to live. Give me my knife," she implored.  
  
Luke shot Aln-Mai a look, and the trainee held up the ornamental dagger in response. "Kir, why would you want to kill yourself? You still have so much potential, but you do not realize it," the Jedi Master said gently, taking the weapon from Aln-Mai.  
  
A muffled whimper was the only sound that emanated from the corner where the young Rinaim was crouched.  
  
Skywalker forged ahead. "You have the ability within you to be a Jedi as well, Kir. I sensed it when I first met you, in the way you pushed at me unconsciously. You can train at the Jedi Academy with Aln-Mai and many other young people, many who come from backgrounds such as yours."  
  
Kir held herself absolutely still. Did this human speak the truth? Could she be something after all? Unconsciously her fur smoothed and she drew in her claws. "Do you sspeak truly?" she asked cautiously, slinking out of the shadowed corner on all fours, like she was a kitling again.  
  
Master Skywalker nodded, his expression serious. "But you must understand Kir, you cannot enter my Academy harboring all this grief. It is dangerous to you and to the other students. You must let go of it, accept their deaths and find ways to work towards new peace that will keep that same sort of incident from occurring again." His clear blue eyes leveled with hers, and Kir found herself nodding before she knew it.  
  
Kir of the Ver tribe rose to her hind feet, in the proud posture she was used to assuming when dealing with other emissaries and nobility. Her ears pricked forward, and her stance was relaxed and ready. In that moment she was transformed from the miserable ball of fur she had been, to what she would later become: a strong, Jedi trainee.

* * *

As the shuttle settled softly onto the surface of Yavin 4, Kir and Aln-Mai undid their crash webbing, gathering their few personal belongings. The Rinaim had made her apology to the human, and they had gotten off to a tentative start. Luke Skywalker eyed them both thoughtfully as all three departed the transport.  
  
Aln-Mai breathed the welcome humid air gratefully. It felt so alive after the confines of the shuttle. His impish grin was back in place and he bade Master Skywalker and Kir goodbye before striding away into the dense jungle. He only paused once to call over his shoulder, "Remember, dinner at sunset!"  
  
Kir flicked her tail at him in what both humans recognized as a sign of amused dismissal. The Rinaim glanced around her in wonder at all the life and vibrancy of Yavin. It was such a change from the drab and austere atmosphere of a space station. She paused to lift a large blue-backed beetle from where it was skittering across a broad leaf. The insect meandered across the felinoid's furless palm before unfurling its iridescent wings and taking flight. Kir inhaled deeply before looking at Luke.  
  
"I think this shall be a good place," was all she said.  
  
An amused glint entered the Jedi's eyes, and the beginnings of a smile touched his mouth, but Luke maintained his calm demeanor. "I think you are right. Come, there is much to be accomplished before the evening meal."  
  
Kir, for the first time, looked uncertain. "I do not know what you want me to do. I only begin to understand the concept of this Force. How shall I be tested on what I barely know?"  
  
As he had done so often before, Master Skywalker rested a comforting hand on her shoulder, guiding her firmly. "It is not for you to worry about. What you do not know you shall be taught, and what you do know shall be honed into skills that you can use for whatever you choose to do later. But don't concentrate on the later, think about the now."  
  
Kir eyed him thoughtfully, before giving him her version of a smile and wrapping the end of her tail around his wrist, a sign that she was excited. "Now I know this shall be a good place." 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Six  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
It felt good to be back on Yavin 4. All that time in space had been getting on Aln-Mai's nerves. He preferred to have his feet on hard, solid ground where he had less fear of his surroundings blowing up.  
  
He was eating in the main dining hall with the Rinaim, Kir, sitting across from him, staring at him intently. It made him uncomfortable. He glanced at her. She was still staring at him. He looked away, slightly embarrassed. He wished he could get rid of her. She dogged his steps, as if an inspector on assignment. She literally watched him do everything except sleep. It was unnerving him. He wondered sometimes if that wasn't what she intended to do.  
  
He got up from where he sat, and so did she. How could he lose her? And then he thought of it-his exercise routine.  
  
He quickened his pace, heading for the entrance to the Great Temple. Kir's curiousity was piqued, and she hurried to keep up with him. He stopped right underneath the overhanging entrance. Calming himself, Aln-Mai gathered the Force to him. He was going for a record jump this time. He was going to try for the second ledge the first time. He knew he could do it, and he wanted, more than anything, to surprise the normally placid Kir.  
  
He focused the Force to him, and in an enormous push against the ground that drained him of all energy, he catapulted into the air at dizzying speed. He soared up and up, the rock of the Great Temple streaming past him in a blur. He looked up, and saw the ledge pass him by, and realized that he had overshot by ten feet! Steadying himself, he scrabbled for a handhold, and finding a small outcropping of rock. He briefly grabbed onto it, then let go and dropped to the ledge below. He was completely drained of all energy, and he was sweating from every pore on his body.  
  
Aln-Mai noted with some satisfaction, however, that Kir's mouth was hanging open in surprise. He allowed himself a small chuckle at the dumbfounded look on Kir's face. That had been fun! And he had set himself a new record! He was proud of himself, although that was one of the things that Master Skywalker continually warned against. 'Pride goeth before the fall' the proverb said. Yes, he supposed, there was some truth to it. He was pondering what to do when he heard a thump next to him. Kir landed in a catlike crouch, looking at the sweating Jedi trainee with an appraising eye.  
  
"Impresssive," she noted, standing up. "Is that your best Force ability?" She waited a moment for the human to shut his oddly-hanging jaw.  
  
"Um, well, one of them," Aln-Mai admitted in a stuttering tone. Kir's right ear flicked, a sign of her unspoken amusement. She found herself greatly intrigued by this human, worthy of her study. She tended to have a way of studying something or someone until she had fully picked it apart in her mind so that she knew every facet and surface that there was to the thing. Aln-Mai was certainly one of the most complex beings she had ever done that to. She settled her green gaze on him once more.  
  
He flushed red at her attention and tugged nervously at his collar. "Kir, I don't mean to be rude or anything...but could you please stop staring at me? I don't know if you know, but direct attention from someone on a human for a long time makes them extremely uncomfortable."  
  
Immediately the Rinaim complied with his wishes. "I apologize, Aln-Mai Tekmi. It is my way of things to study someone intensely. Does it also bother you that I follow you? I meant no disrespect when I did it, but I am learning more about the Academy and the ways of Jedi trainees through you." Kir felt that she had to explain herself to him, she did not want her stalking actions to be misunderstood.  
  
To her great surprise, Aln-Mai laughed. "Oh, is that all? Why don't you just ask next time?"  
  
Both Kir's ears flicked back in great surprise. "Because Rinaim do not ask, they just do."  
  
"Well, in this society, ask first. You've been sheltered, Kir. Many beings don't like being followed or stared at. I guess since you were daughter of an emissary, you were allowed to do that before, but now you're on an equal level with many others."  
  
Kir held up one hand before he could continue. "Thank you, Aln-Mai Tekmi. I will be more careful in the future." Any mention of what had been before she had come to the Academy disturbed the well of pain inside her, something she was dealing with slowly as best she could.  
  
Aln-Mai moved to look over the edge of the shelf they were standing on. "How did you manage to get up here?"  
  
Kir's whiskers trembled in suppressed laughter. "Rinaim do not need the Force to climb and leap. In fact, why trouble oneself when there are so many natural ways of gaining heights?" She turned and jumped the span between the ledge and a nearby tree, claws catching easily in the bark. In a rustle of leaves she had turned back, mischief dancing in her eyes.  
  
Tired and drained from the highest leap he had ever done, Aln-Mai suddenly decided that climbing down was likely a better recourse than trying to jump back down. Gauging the the distance carefully, he took a running start and propelled himself across the space, hands grasping the narrow limb. His right hand slipped, and he dangled only by his left. Sweat shone on his face as he struggled to get his handhold back, legs kicking at empty air. Using all the energy he had regained from his short rest atop the temple, he nudged himself slightly upward with the Force, almost overbalancing as he hauled himself onto the branch, gasping for breath.  
  
Kir turned back to recognize Aln-Mai's plight not a moment too soon. With an agility possessed by all cat-like creatures, she worked her way back out on the limb, which was bending lower and lower under their combined weights.  
  
"You require assistance to reach the ground. Grab me around the middle," the Rinaim instructed.  
  
Her companion shook his head, hair whipping about his face. "No, we'll fall!"  
  
"Trust me, Aln-Mai. I know my abilities." Kir's voice was calm and unhurried, as if they were discussing something over dinner. Her tail tightened around his waist, steadying his tired, shaky body.  
  
Muttering a little prayer, he gripped the branch beneath him, trusting Kir to catch him if he slipped.  
  
Slowly Kir began to creep back towards the trunk of the tree, hand over hand. Her hind legs found purchase on a thick bough, and she nudged the human clinging to her off onto the large branch. Aln-Mai was breathing fast and his eyes were wild, but he was in one piece. "Are you all right?" she questioned.  
  
Aln-Mai nodded, but he couldn't force words past the knot of fear in his throat.  
  
"Come, let us climb down and assure those others down there that we are all right." Kir tugged at his sleeve, forcing Aln-Mai to move in front of her. She knew that she could catch him if he slipped again.  
  
Aln-Mai collapsed to his knees as his feet hit solid ground. That had been entirely too close for his comfort. Kir landed in a crouch on all fours and stalked forward to address the knot of trainees that had witnessed the entire event.  
  
"Are you both unharmed?" a muscular girl in scaled armor asked, red braids framing her face.  
  
Kir rose to her full height, dusting off her fur. "Yes, we are."  
  
"You're new here, aren't you?" A boy at her side asked.  
  
Aln-Mai had finally regained enough dignity and nerve to rise to his feet. "Hi, Jacen. Yes, she is. This is Kir of the Ver tribe, daughter of a Rinaim emissary. They were stationed on Dibon..."  
  
Kir quickly cut him off, tail drooping at the memory. "I was brought here by Master Skywalker. I have not even begun my training yet."  
  
Jacen nodded to Aln-Mai; he and the other boy had not always gotten along. They had a general acquaintance standing at this point, distant but not hostile. "Welcome to Yavin, Kir. I'm Jacen Solo, and this is Tenel Ka from Dathomir."  
  
Both names rang a bell within the Rinaim's memory. "Jacen Solo...son of General Solo? And Tenel Ka of the Royal House, if I'm not mistaken." Kir's infallible memory for dignitaries was in high gear.  
  
The warrior girl merely nodded her acknowledgement, but did not expound upon her title. Kir guessed her to be a close-mouthed sort. Jacen, however, smiled lopsidedly. "Yes, that's me. I--"  
  
Aln-Mai interrupted him. "Kir, we need to go."  
  
The Rinaim's ears drooped in a puzzled frown. She could not recall anywhere that they specifically had to be...  
  
"Come on, I promised I'd show you the rest of the ruins, remember?" Aln-Mai tugged at Kirs elbow, and she grudgingly followed him.  
  
"It was nice to meet you, Jacen and Tenel Ka," she called over her shoulder as Aln-Mai led her deep into the jungle. Noises from animal life chirped and cawed all around them, and steamy vapor rose from the dark soil cloyingly.  
  
At last Aln-Mai stopped, eyes closed as if listening.  
  
"Why did you do that?" Kir's question caused him to regard her seriously. He knew what she meant, but did not respond immediately. Why indeed? Why had he felt the need to get away from Jacen and Tenel Ka? Because he was jealous. They had a select group of friends, while he had always been a loner. And he didn't want them taking Kir away from him. He wanted her to be his friend...Aln-Mai shook his head. Where had such thoughts come from?  
  
"I just...wanted to...show you around, that's all," Aln-Mai said, wincing inwardly at the bald-faced lie.  
  
"Well, I appreciate the gesture, but from what I remember from your daily routine, you are late for lightsaber practice," Kir noted in a most aggravating offhand manner.  
  
"What? Oh, no! Lightsaber practice with Master Skywalker!" Aln-Mai berated himself for being so distracted as he turned and ran back toward the Temple, Kir jogging easily behind him.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Seven  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
Aln-Mai skidded into the training chamber, slightly out of breath.  
  
"I'm so sorry I'm late, Master Skywalker. I was distracted with other things," Aln-Mai apologized, bowing respectfully to the Jedi Master.  
  
"That's all right," Master Skywalker said, motioning for Aln-Mai to sit beside him.  
  
"Aren't we going to practice with stun rods, Master?" Aln-Mai asked curiously.  
  
"Not anymore," Master Skywalker replied with a small half-smile.  
  
Aln-Mai's heart gave a double thump in his chest at those words.  
  
"I want you to start constructing your lightsaber," Master Skywalker said.  
  
Aln-Mai was excited beyond belief, but he managed to control the urge to leap into the air and whoop. "Yes, Master. I am familiar with the basic construction, but where am I to get crystals for it?"  
  
Master Skywalker smiled. "In most cases, I would have students scour the jungle and surrounding temples for their crystals. However, in your case, I have something for you."  
  
Master Skywalker reached behind him and pulled out a small containment device that required a code to open. Aln-Mai recognized it as being the same parcel given to Master Skywalker the day he had arrived at the Jedi Academy.  
  
"When you were sent here by your poor parents, they had but one valuable. They decided that they did not have a direct need for it, and told me to give it to you when you had reached the appropriate time in your training," Master Skywalker explained as he punched in the code at the top of the box. With a hiss, it opened and deposited a glittering gem in the Jedi Master's lap. Aln-Mai sucked in his breath. It was a kaiburr crystal, the most sought out crystals in the galaxy for the construction of lightsabers.  
  
"But Master," Aln-Mai protested, holding up the crystal, "It is too large to be put into a single lightsaber. How am I to use it?"  
  
The Jedi Master smiled. "I leave that to you. I have only one precaution for you, though," he said as he stood up. "The kaiburr crystal focuses the energy so well that it has the power to cut through virtually any object, including the blades of other lightsabers, if they are poorly constructed." The Jedi Master lowered his head. "I already had that happen just a while ago, you might recall."  
  
Aln-Mai remembered. The muscular red-haired girl, Tenel Ka, had had her arm severed because of a hurried construction of her lightsaber. It had failed in practice, and Jacen had accidentally cut off her arm.  
  
"Yes, Master. I will get to work right away."  
  
"Bring your lightsaber to me for inspection when you have finished it, just to be safe," Master Skywalker said.  
  
"Of course, Master Skywalker."  
  
He almost sprinted out of the chamber and came face-to-face with Kir.  
  
"Kir! Guess what? I'm constructing my lightsaber!" he said with boyish enthusiasm.  
  
"I see," Kir said, folding her arms across her furry chest. "And this is desirable?"  
  
Aln-Mai stopped, looking puzzled. "Of course it is! It's one of the best parts of training to be a Jedi!"  
  
"Is it not also dangerous?" Kir asked.  
  
Aln-Mai was brought up short. "Well, yeah, it is. I suppose I shouldn't get all worked up about it." He took a deep breath to calm himself, then exhaled. "I need to find some casings about this long," he said, holding his hands about one and three-quarter feet apart.  
  
"Why so long?" Kir asked curiously.  
  
Aln-Mai smiled. "You'll see."

* * *

The young Jedi labored over the work table. This was not as easy as it looked.  
  
Aln-Mai had studied the history of the Jedi arts carefully. He had studied old lightsaber fighting styles and new ones. He had examined readouts of ancient lightsabers and the principles behind their construction. Now, he believed he had the solution to his problem.  
  
In the earliest days of the Jedi, many had become completely devoted to the study of the lightsaber. Some of the greatest fencers had used a lightsaber with two blades, one on either end. Aln-Mai realized that this was the answer.  
  
He had been meticulously cutting the kaiburr crystal into two equal halves for the past half hour. He wanted to make sure that his lightsaber was a good one. He and Kir had been scouring all the old meeting rooms that had been used by the Rebel Alliance for three days and, together, they had found enough hard metal to contruct a long, rather slender handle for his lightsaber.  
  
He finally cut through the crystal with the laser cutter. He switched it off, and carefully inserted one of the halves into the end of the saber, making sure all of the ends met. He fused the focusing lens into place over the crystal, then repeated the other procedure on the other side. Finally it was done. He laid aside his tools and picked up the weapon. He held it out before him and ignited one of the ends. A pure white blade erupted from the lightsaber with a hiss. He smiled, studying his handiwork. He ignited the other end, and the lightsaber became a deadly two-ended weapon. He twirled the saber above his head, and it buzzed through the air. He felt the throbbing power in the blade, and it energized him inwardly. He switched it off, and clipping it to his belt, rushed out of his room to show Kir.

* * *

In the few weeks that the Rinaim had begun studying at the Academy, she felt that she had learned much about the techniques of the Jedi. She had even managed to gain some old books on the subject from Aln-Mai and another girl whom she had met in a class conducted by Master Tionne. And, while Kir was normally very reserved, she had to admit that only the small portion she had read was enough to make her very excited.  
  
She was poring over an especially dusty volume, constantly holding her breath to keep from sneezing. Kir, although she was used to the sterile environment and stern architecture of space stations, found her new home a very different and pleasant change. She had known very little of Rinai VII, for her parents had left it when Kir was very young. The young Rinaim had been told that her world was similar to places like Yavin, but she doubted it was as wild and untamed as this jungle.  
  
From her comfortable, and what would seem precarious to most, perch on a narrow tree branch, Kir glanced around the lush vegetation and inhaled deeply. All in all, she did like it here. The surroundings did something to one's mind. They reminded her that there was life, both smaller and bigger than just her. Kir turned her attention back to her book. 'A Jedi respects all life, be it larger or smaller than they,' she read, and flicked one ear in amusement at her earlier thought.  
  
Her study was interrupted by a sudden whistle. She cocked her ears and sat up straight, listening for the source of the sound, all her instincts on alert. The shrill sound came again, and Kir turned around fully on her perch only to see and sense too late the large bird dive-bombing her.  
  
She yowled in surprise, tumbling off the branch at the flurry of feathers around her. Kir fell a good twenty feet to the ground and landed on all fours. A heavy object with a sharp corner struck her right shoulder, causing the muscle to spasm and go limp as her book bounced off her and hit the ground. Her right arm collapsed beneath her and Kir struggled to her feet, more surprised than hurt. She looked around her wildly for her attacker, claws splayed and teeth bared.  
  
Her ears heard the fluttering of wings an instant before she registered the soft thump of a landing behind her. Kir froze for a brief instant, then turned with all of her fighting skills ready, her right arm still hanging useless at her side. The next moment, she found herself stuck in place, unable to move. The Rinaim found herself face to face with an aviatory alien, most likely a student, holding one winglike arm straight out in front of it. Faintly she could see bony fingers hidden within the feathers, and she understood that the other was holding her in place with the Force.  
  
"I am sorry," the being trilled, "I did not intend to hurt you or cause you to fall. I merely wanted to surprise you."  
  
Kir relaxed, some of her initial tension dissolving. She found herself released, and moved to recover Aln-Mai's book. It looked none the worse for wear, but when she opened it, a section of thirty pages or so fell out. "Oh, no. This was on loan to me from a friend. See what you've done!" she exclaimed, not knowing anything of how to go about mending the novel.  
  
The other student cocked it's head and blinked before folding it's arms behind it. "I did apologize," it pointed out, "and if you were in tune with the Force you would have sensed me as I approached and not fallen."  
  
Kir's temper flared and she snarled back, "Your apology does not fix my friend's book! And I am not trained enough yet to know how to be in tune with the Force all the time. This is only my first week here and it was going well until you came along."  
  
The bird drew itself up proudly and puffed some of it's russet feathers up. "Do not talk to a Knight that way, Trainee."  
  
Kir bristled at the insult and drew herself up, Aln-Mai's book tucked safely under her good arm. She knew that she should not react out of anger, but her instincts screamed to lash back. "If you are a Knight, then I respect your authority over me," she took a deep breath, "and I am sorry that I spoke to you disrespectfully."  
  
The Knight looked at her with obscure, black eyes for a moment, and when Kir sensed that it had nothing else to say, she turned and left, feeling achingly beginning to return to her fingers.

* * *

Aln-Mai pressed the buzzer on Kir's door for the fourth time. No answer. He punched in the manual override and the door swished open. He poked his head in and looked around the room, which was, for the most part, completely devoid of any decorating objects. Kir was not in her room.  
  
Aln-Mai scratched his chin, trying to think where Kir might be. His lightsaber thumped against his knee as he attempted to concentrate. Kir loved the jungle, so she could be outside the temple. She also might be in the library. Aln-Mai rushed down the hall to the temple entrance. He rounded a corner and collided full force with Kir, who stumbled backward, quickly regaining her balance.  
  
"Kir!" Aln-Mai gasped rubbing his back where he had landed. "I just finished..." Aln-Mai stopped, seeing the upset look on her face. "What's wrong?"  
  
Kir's ears drooped as she presented Aln-Mai with his ruined book. "I was reading your book in a tree and a bird Jedi, a Knight, surprised me. I fell because I wasn't in tune with the Force and I did not sense him. I spoke words to him that no Trainee would ever use, and...your book...I am sorry." She felt woefully ashamed and embarrassed to admit her fault.  
  
Aln-Mai's face grew set, though with a slightly bemused twist to his lip. "We'll see about this." He blasted from the corridor at the full speed of the Force and was out of sight in a matter of seconds. Kir dashed down the hall after, hardly keeping pace. She had a feeling she knew where he was going, and ducked down a different passage, utilizing a shortcut that let high outside the Temple. She had just lauched herself through the window when she heard Aln-Mai's voice from down on the ground.  
  
"TURRO!"  
  
Kir quickly scanned the skies for the creature that had attacked her, and spotted the blur of feathers streaking toward the ground. The being flared its wings and alighted on the stone steps of the temple.  
  
"Yes, Aln-Mai?"  
  
"I think that you need to double-check with Master Skywalker about your level of training, Knight." Aln-Mai waved the book underneath the other student's nose.  
  
The bird-creature called Turro stared at the book, then guiltily at Aln-Mai. "Sorry," Turro mumbled.  
  
"Just don't surprise people when they're reading in trees. It could lead to a disaster. And please don't try and call yourself a Knight again. Word travels fast around here, and I'd hate to see the expression on Master Skywalker's face if he heard that students who had only been in training for a year believed that they were fully qualified Jedi Knights." Aln-Mai gave the creature a small smile. "See you later, Turro."  
  
Aln-Mai turned and walked back into the temple, while Turro took wing with a dejected look on his face.  
  
Kir scrambled down from her perch and raced back down the corridor, trying to beat Aln-Mai back to the spot where he had left her. She didn't want him to know that she had been eavesdropping on his conversation.  
  
She rounded the corner, ever so slightly out of breath. Aln-Mai came into view a few moments later, still carrying the book with him.  
  
"I've cleared the whole thing up, Kir. And just for future reference, there are no Knights at the Academy. The only fully trained Jedi on Yavin 4 is Master Skywalker."  
  
"But your book..." Kir said, puzzled.  
  
"Ah, that's no big deal. I can get it fixed, and I got for free. Not a loss, really." Aln-Mai stopped, and his expression grew excited. "Guess what? I finished my lightsaber!" He unclipped it from his belt and handed it to her, waiting expectantly for her approval.  
  
Kir knew nothing of the making of lightsabers save for what she had read in Aln-Mai's books, but she took it and weighed in her hands nonetheless, pretending to check its balance and igniting both ends, studying them theatrically.  
  
"It is the best lightsaber I have ever seen," she stopped at the look of delight on her friend's face, and then Kir finished her sentence, "but that is because it is the only lightsaber I have ever seen."  
  
Aln-Mai's face fell, and Kir flicked one ear forward in amusement.  
  
"Do not worry, Aln-Mai. In my culture, we would say that I have just pulled your tail. I was joking," she reassured him. "It is a fine lightsaber, but in my studies, I only recall a use of this type of lightsaber by the Sith order. Is it safe?"  
  
Aln-Mai bobbed his head in affirmation. "It has been used by Jedi, but very long ago, in the infant days of the Old Republic. Master Skywalker left it up to me how best to use the crystal. I had debated between this design or a two-lightsaber fighting style. I decided to do this. I think I can handle it..." he smiled wryly, "...with enough training, that is."  
  
"I see," Kir said. She personally believed that handling such a dangerous weapon was beyond even Aln-Mai's ablilites, but she kept her doubts to herself.  
  
"Come on, I'm supposed to show Master Skywalker so he can inspect it. Let's go!" Aln-Mai said, tugging at her arm.  
  
Kir followed Aln-Mai down the corridor to the lightsaber training arena, where Master Skywalker could usually be found. There were other students there, all practicing with their own lightsabers. A couple glanced at Aln-Mai and Kir, some with puzzled expressions on their faces as they noticed the unusual proportions of Aln-Mai's lightsaber.  
  
Master Skywalker was on the other side of the arena, overseeing practice. Aln-Mai noted that it was Jacen and Jaina Solo who were dueling against each other. He walked around the chamber to him, being careful to stay out of the other students' way. He stepped up to Master Skywalker.  
  
"Excuse me, Master Skywalker, but you told me to present my lightsaber to you when I was finished with it," Aln-Mai said.  
  
Master Skywalker motioned for Jacen and Jaina to stop, and turned to Aln-Mai. "Already finished?" he asked.  
  
"Kir helped me find the parts I needed, so the work went a little faster," Aln-Mai explained.  
  
"Oh," Master Skywalker said. "Well then, let me see how you did."  
  
Aln-Mai unclipped the long weapon from his belt and handed it over. He noticed that Jacen and Jaina stared at it with curiosity, but Master Skywalker seemed unperturbed, turning it over in his hands, testing the strength of the casings. He did not ignite it.  
  
"Very well, let's see how you do with it in practice. Jacen, come and see if Aln-Mai did a good job with his lightsaber."  
  
Jaina stepped away from Jacen as Aln-Mai took a neutral posture, facing Jacen. Jacen grinned as he ignited his green lightsaber. The grin quickly dissolved as both ends of Aln-Mai's lightsaber flamed into deadly white edges. He stepped away from Aln-Mai, protesting.  
  
"Uncle Luke..." he began, but Master Skywalker cut him off.  
  
"Why did you choose that design, Aln-Mai?" he asked.  
  
"I read about it in several history books, and thought it was a good idea," Aln-Mai explained.  
  
"I see. Aln-Mai, why don't you watch, since you haven't practiced with it yet," Master Skywalker said, stepping forward and taking the lightsaber from Aln-Mai.  
  
Aln-Mai's stomach twisted with disappointment at not being able to duel Jacen with his lightsaber, but he bowed submissively and stood against the wall next to Kir, who was wearing an 'I-told-you-so' expression on her face.  
  
Master Skywalker hefted the lightsaber, testing the balance, then held it in front of his chest, running diagonally down from left to right-a defensive posture. From that position, all Master Skywalker had to do was move it slightly to deflect any incoming attack.  
  
Jacen swung downward at Master Skywalker's right shoulder, and Master Skywalker brought the end up to deflect it. The blades crashed together with a flash of light and a crackle of sound. Aln-Mai knew that he had the advantage in a lightsaber lock, because his longer handle offered better leverage.  
  
Master Skywalker quickly spun the saber counterclockwise and directed an attack at Jacen's left shoulder, which he barely blocked before Master Skywalker reversed the direction of his attack, using the other end to assault Jacen's thigh. Again, Jacen barely had enough time to deflect it before Master Skywalker had spun the blade clockwise and was attacking Jacen's other shoulder. Aln-Mai's eyes widened as he realized the full potential of his weapon. Following a single deflection, Master Skywalker had taken the offensive and was driving Jacen backward.  
  
Master Skywalker pivoted away from Jacen, returning to his original defensive posture. "Jaina, would you please join your brother?" he asked, not changing his stance.  
  
It took Jaina a moment to realize what Master Skywalker had said. "You want us both to attack you, Uncle Luke?" she said uncertainly.  
  
"Precisely," he said. "I'm trying to show Aln-Mai all the benefits of the weapon he chose."  
  
Jaina stepped up next to Jacen and ignited her lavender blade. They looked at each other, then they swung, both of them going for opposite shoulders.  
  
Master Skywalker didn't even hesitate. He spun the saber in front of him, deflecting Jaina's blow down and Jacen's blade upward. He continued the spin, bring the saber down across his chest, aiming a blow a Jaina's shoulder. She quickly brought her blade up, turning the other saber aside. Master Skywalker rotated the saber the opposite direction, attacking Jacen's right arm from below. Jacen swung his saber down, parrying the blow.  
  
Aln-Mai watched in fascination as Master Skywalker held both Jacen and Jaina in check, even causing them to defend themselves as the twins attempted to force the Jedi Master off-balance. They had absolutely no success whatsoever.  
  
Kir watched the entire exchange, ears cocked and swiveling, whiskers trembing in excited anticipation. She didn't want to miss even a millisecond of the exchange. Master Skywalker had never seemed so.deadly. For a species with no natural weapons such as teeth and claws, humans' ablities and skills were quite impressive. As the daughter of galactic emissary, few things surprised her, and Master Skywalker was one of those things.  
  
The Jedi Master's gyrations with Aln-Mai's lightsaber grew quicker and more precise, and Kir was sure that if he pressed his attack any further, then Jacen and--Jaina, was it?--would be hurt. She let her eyes drift to her friend for a moment. Aln-Mai's expression was one of awe and hunger. Indeed, his lightsaber held incredible potential, but he needed to learn to master the techniques and advantages it offered him. Kir wondered offhandedly if Master Skywalker woud allow him to keep it. She thought it much too dangerous for Aln-Mai to handle, but then she was a student as well, and not a teacher.  
  
Glancing back to the three fighters, she saw that Master Skywalker had halted and was holding the double-bladed saber in the position he had first started in. He then deactivated the twin blades as Jacen and his sister imitated him.  
  
The Jedi Master handed Aln-Mai his weapon. "A well-engineered lightsaber, Aln-Mai. However, I am going to put a restriction on you, just for now. Only use your lightsaber in the classical configuration, that is, one blade only. You and I will practice dueling with both blades later. Now," he said, motioning Jacen and Jaina against the wall, "let's see how you handle yourself."  
  
Master Skywalker removed his own lightsaber from his belt, activating it and holding it at his side, waiting for Aln-Mai.  
  
Aln-Mai stepped up, activating it, and performing the traditional Jedi salute, braced himself for Master Skywalker's attack. He held his hands far apart on the handle, giving him maximum leverage and speed.  
  
Master Skywalker came at him, directing his attack at Aln-Mai's neck. Aln-Mai parried easily, and aimed a thrust at Master Skywalker's abdomen, which was similarly deflected. They traded blows, neither gaining an advantage over the other. Aln-Mai's lightsaber design made up for Master Skywalker's clearly superior abilities with a lightsaber.  
  
As Aln-Mai stopped a blow to his forearm, an idea occurred to him, and he decided to up the ante. He tapped into the Force, adding its power to his movements, giving him more speed and strength. Master Skywalker anticipated his actions and did likewise, delivering three rapid blows at blinding speed, all of which Aln-Mai deflected without difficulty. Aln-Mai opened himself to the Force, drawing upon all his knowledge of it. The Jedi Master didn't miss a beat, and the sounds of their battle blended into one constant shriek of lightsaber on lightsaber.  
  
Kir was holding her breath, tail wrapped tightly around her waist in her unconscious anxiety. A thrill of excitement whipped through her as she watched her friend duel with her Master. Jacen and Jaina stood beside her, similarly motionless in awe. The Rinaim knew that both were skilled with a blade, but they had never encountered anything quite like Aln-Mai's saber.  
  
Aln-Mai's movements got quicker as he defended, thrust, and blocked again. His shoulder-length hair, held only in check by a leather headband, whipped about his face as he jumped a stroke meant for his legs. Kir could almost see the Force flowing through him. Her body trembled with repressed energy as she watched the student and the Master.  
  
Luke Skywalker was holding his own, testing what the younger man had learned. The longer handle of Aln-Mai's lightsaber gave him the advantage of leverage and balance, though he fought with just one sword. Then the Master's frenzied blows intensified, signaling his own grasp of the Force.  
  
Back and forth the two went, locked in a graceful dance orchestrated by a power Kir was only beginning to understand. Master Skywalker and Aln-Mai moved with an unheard rhythm, in tune with the Force to such a point that they had let all other reality leave them. She could see it in the way they ignored all distractions, even when a student across the room shouted something in a language Kir couldn't identify.  
  
Kir thought that certainly both had to be tiring, but neither seemed to be willing to budge an inch. If any ground was taken, it was soon regained. It looked to her to be a stalemate, but then she did not know everything of Jedi fighting.  
  
At long last, after an eternity, the duet of shrieking lightsabers ceased. The young Rinaim was surprised to find that there was no air in her lungs. Mechanically, she forced herself to inhale. The stunning display of keen skills honed to near-perfection had left her breathless, not to mention speechless. And that was something that almost never happened to Kir of the Ver tribe. 


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.  
  
T W I N S A B E R S  
  
Chapter Eight  
  
Composed by, The Nova Scribes  
  
Aln-Mai lowered his lightsaber, adreneline still pounding in his veins. He saluted Master Skywalker again, then deactivated his lightsaber.  
  
"Very good, Aln-Mai. You've done an exemplary job of constructing your lightsaber, and you handle it well. I'll meet with you tomorrow to do some additional lightsaber training. For now, why don't you take a shower and get some rest. If you want to practice with someone else, you can partner with somebody who isn't sparring," Master Skywalker said, gesturing to the people standing against the wall all around the room.  
  
"No, thank you, Master Skywalker. I think that I'm done for today," Aln-Mai said with a small smile. In truth, he was exhausted. Master Skywalker had given as good as he'd got, and he knew that the Jedi Master wasn't short for breath. It may have seemed that neither was gaining the upper hand, but that was because Master Skywalker hadn't pushed an offensive.  
  
Aln-Mai clipped the lightsaber to his belt, and turned back to Kir. She was standing rigid, as if in shock. Her fur was standing on end, and her ears were perked forward, obviously taking in every detail.  
  
"Kir? Are you okay?" Aln-Mai teased her. Kir bristled, and she smoothed her fur, the tip of her tail twitching in impatience.  
  
"I am fine. It seems that you did well in your duel with Master Skywalker," she said, casually licking her fur, as though making a comment on the color of sky.  
  
Aln-Mai's smile fell a bit, but then remembered that she might be 'pulling his tail.' He shrugged, and started to walk out of the practice chamber, trying to give the impression of indifference. As he walking, he heard soft footfalls, and smiled inwardly. He continued to walk, his long-handled lightsaber thumping his knee with every other step. He might have to construct a sheath of some kind so that carrying it wouldn't be so annoying.  
  
"Where are you going?" Kir asked, falling into step beside him.  
  
Aln-Mai attempted to feign surprise at her presence. "Kir! Didn't see you there."  
  
Kir's eyes narrowed, but the tip of her tail curled, betraying her amusement.  
  
"I'm going to take a shower, and then I'll probably rest. What about you? I thought that your first lesson with Tionne was today," Aln-Mai said, stretching slightly to soothe his muscles, which were still burning with energy from his duel with Master Skywalker. That had been the most keyed-up Aln-Mai had ever been, and he felt slightly proud of himself about how he reacted under pressure.  
  
Kir, on the other hand, stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide and her tail twitching with agitation. "My lesson! It's supposed to be right now!" the Rinaim wailed, and without even saying goodbye, she spun, and falling to all fours, she leaped down the hall and rounded a corner, skidding slightly on the stone floor of the temple. She dashed out of sight, and Aln-Mai shook his head, smiling to himself. She had forgotten about her lesson, after keeping such good track of his. He continued down the hall to the lift, chuckling to himself.

* * *

Kir slid to a halt in front of the door to the room where she was supposed to meet Tionne. She checked herself quickly to make sure her fur was arranged, not wanting to appear disheveled. She rose back onto two legs, silently reminding herself that it had been somewhat childish to run on all fours, despite it being a quicker means of getting around.  
  
She poked her tail in the doorway, in the traditional Rinaim request to enter. She realized that Tionne might not know the significance of her tail, but as she was about to poke her head in the doorway, a soft voice called, "Come in, Kir."  
  
Kir stepped into the room, her nose twitching and her eyes taking in the surroundings. The room was rather non-descript, with nothing adorning the walls or ceiling. There was a small cot, and a curious stringed instrument laying on the bed. Kir had heard from Aln-Mai that Tionne's favorite means of teaching was through music and poetry, and Kir assumed that the instrument belonged to Tionne.  
  
"Kir," Tionne prompted, drawing her attention. "Please, have a seat."  
  
Tionne was sitting on a small cushion on the floor, cross-legged and relaxed. Kir had seen Tionne about the Academy before, but now took time to stop and study her. She was slender, and youthful in appearance, but her wisdom was extensive, and it showed in her face, the somber yet peaceful look that she normally had. Her hair was silver-white, and it also made her look older than she really was.  
  
"I'm sorry I was late, Tionne," Kir apologized, her tail drooping slightly.  
  
"That's all right, Kir. You're here now, so let's get started." She motioned Kir into a cushion opposite her, so that they were facing each other. Kir settled onto the cushion, making sure not to accidentally sit on her own tail. Tionne took a moment to regard Kir before speaking.  
  
"Before this lesson was scheduled, I looked in the archives at the history of the Rinaim and their culture, their customs, and their association with other races. You come from a place not so different from that of some of the students here, but for you, your ties to your home planet are not as strong as most others." She paused, watching Kir's face closely before continuing.  
  
"You were never on your planet for any long period of time, so your mannerisms are different than many of those who were brought here. You are used to traveling, whereas someone like your friend Aln-Mai, who grew up on Malastare, never went anyplace else until he was brought to the Academy. So for you to stay in one place like this will cause you to adapt in many ways, I'm sure."  
  
Kir listened intently to Tionne, but wondered silently in the back of her mind what the purpose of Tionne explaining her situation was. She shifted slightly on the cushion, continuing to pay attention to what Tionne was saying.  
  
"You have never known any study of the mind, Kir. This is more a blessing than a curse, because this will enable you to focus and learn about using the Force much more quickly than someone who has an excessive amount of time to themselves where they are constantly thinking and theorizing about the things around us...you are much more apt to advance because of your teachability in this area." Tionne paused, and then looked directly into Kir's eyes.  
  
"Tell me, Kir, when you traveled with your parents, did you ever feel like there was an evil presence around you, or a calm aura?" Kir was struck by the question, and nodded mutely. Tionne seemed to know how Kir had perceived the ambassadorial meetings her parents attended.  
  
"Did you ever feel that presence diminish as you traveled, whether the feeling was good or evil?" Tionne continued.  
  
Kir shook her head, remembering where there were tense periods in her life or simply blank moments where she had not lost contact with her "sixth sense," as she called it. How did Tionne read her mind so well?  
  
"The Force is everywhere, Kir. In the walls of this temple, in the trees of the jungle, in you, and in me. It permeates every living and inanimate thing in the universe. We are never out of touch with it. You no doubt have read this in books from your friend Aln-Mai. Have you ever tried to simply submerge yourself in that aura that you have been in contact with?"  
  
Kir shook her head, this time speaking aloud. "I never attributed my ability to detect such things with the Force before, so I did not know exactly what I was feeling."  
  
Tionne nodded. "I understand that, Kir. Most people think of it as a 'gut feeling.' The truth is, we can listen to it closely, hearing the whispers of the Force and what it is telling us. So we begin the lesson."  
  
Tionne shifted on the cushion, tucking her legs under her. Kir did the same, squatting back on her hind legs, since her knees did not bend the same direction as Tionne's.  
  
"Now, we'll start with a simple excersise. I want you to clear your mind of all thoughts. Concentrate solely on the Force. You're not attempting to do anything but feel the Force flowing through you and your surroundings."  
  
Kir closed her eyes, trying to empty her mind. She could still her Tionne's soft breathing, smell the light fragrance of the room, feel the cushion beneath her...Kir pushed the sensations away. She tried to remember that feeling of foreboding she had experienced that day on Dibon, that presence of mind that was so entrenched in her soul...  
  
A peculiar thing began to happen in Kir's mind. She began to feel--no, experience--the room around her, with a living energy flowing through it, binding it's substance together, welding the fabric of matter itself. She could sense the same energy in Tionne, moving through her and around her, encompassing her being.  
  
Kir slowly turned that sense of the Force upon herself, discovering the energy within herself, caressing her body like breeze too soft to be felt. She concentrated intently upon the Force, and the way it moved around her, swirled in the room, pulling everything together, and at the same time, holding it stationary. Kir was almost sure she could actually see the room around her, and Tionne seated in front of her, despite her eyes being closed. She reached out with her conciousness and grazed the surface of the energy that crackled in the room. It responded to her mental touch, gathering itself within the room. She pushed with her mind, slightly at first, then harder as she bent her mind upon the Force. She gathered her mind and pushed out with it in all directions, draining her stamina in a single burst of her will.  
  
Kir's eyes flew open in shock as the bricks that enclosed the room groaned and shuddered, dust shaking loose from the ceiling and walls as Kir pushed outward with the Force. The mini-earthquake ceased as quickly as it started, the room becoming silent as Kir sat in amazement at her accomplishment. She looked at Tionne, who was smiling slightly, and nodded her head in approval.  
  
"You performed as I expected you would. You see what a great effort it is to use the Force, and yet how effortless it is to be in tune with it. As your ability to listen to the Force increases, so will your ability to use it. You did exceptionally well for your first lesson, Kir."  
  
Kir grinned broadly, then reminded herself that it was the smallest of baby steps to do what she had done. She was excited, nonetheless.  
  
"Thank you, Tionne. May I go now?" Kir asked.  
  
"Yes you may, but before you do, I want you to answer a question." Kir's ears perked up. A question? But she had hardly learned anything yet! However, she nodded at Tionne.  
  
"Why do you think I reminded you of your background and your culture before we began the lesson?"  
  
Kir stopped and contemplated that question...why had Tionne said all that? She thought about it, remembering when Tionne mentioned her trainability...  
  
Kir looked up, certain of her answer. "To show me how to relate to the Force in my own way...by contemplating the mind rather than the surroundings, since that's what I'm always doing. It's a habit formed from traveling so much: paying more attention to where I am going rather than the here and now."  
  
Tionne nodded, giving Kir another small smile. "That was very much my intent. I also wanted to show you that your background has nothing to do with your ability to use the Force. But you realized the main idea." She stood, slowly unfolding herself and rising. Kir did the same, simply standing on her hind legs.  
  
"That is enough for today. You may go. We will resume at another time." Tionne ushered Kir out the door, and closed it when Kir was in the hallway.  
  
Kir stood for a moment thinking about her small personal victory...and how far she had to go to reach the level of training that Aln-Mai was at. She had never done anything like learn to use the Force before in her life; she had never concentrated on something as hard as she did now.  
  
In her mind, Kir resolved to work as hard as she could to achieve the goal of using the Force. It had become her drive, and she intended to pursue it as whole-heartedly as she could. She walked down the hall to the stairway leading to the lower level of the temple, quietly humming to herself as she went.  
  
A/N: Yay! We've finally done something worthwhile! Tell us what you think, if there are indeed people who still check this story to see if it is updated. 


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

T W I N S A B E R S

Chapter Nine

Composed by, The Nova Scribes

Aln-Mai reclined on his bed, relaxing after having taken a refreshing shower, enjoying the feeling of cool air on his skin. He was immersed in an epic novel that he had borrowed from the Jedi Academy's library. Although Aln-Mai was partial to history, he enjoyed fiction every now and again.

He was considering a nap when there was a knock on the door, bringing him out of his thoughts. He set the book down, carefully marking his place and grabbed an open-necked robe from his wardrobe, quickly pulling it on. He depressed the button next to the door, and it swooshed open to reveal Kir, looking somewhat excited and pleased.

"Hi, Kir. Did you just finish your training session with Tionne?" he asked.

"Yes. It was a very good lesson, as well. I have a better understanding of the Force and how it relates to me," she answered, her tail curling slightly. This was her third lesson with Tionne, and she was learning everything she possible could about the study of the Force.

"Hang on, I've got to finish getting dressed," Aln-Mai said, closing the door and quickly grabbing a comfortable brown tunic. He retrieved his lightsaber from a high shelf by levitating it down, and clipping it to his belt, he opened the door again.

"Hey, what would you say about going on a little excursion?" Aln-Mai asked.

Kir's ears perked up, and she looked somewhat interested. "What kind of excursion?"

"Well, I want to make some sort of sheath for my lightsaber, because I'm going to develop a bruise on my right knee if it hangs where it is now," Aln-Mai said.

"Where will you find the materials to make a sheath?" Kir asked.

Aln-Mai winked. "We'll have to go find them." He walked out of his room and down the hallway, heading towards the exit to the jungle. Kir followed, her curiosity piqued.

"By the way, do you have your knife on you?" Aln-Mai asked as he turned a corner, coming into the main entryway.

"Yes, it is in my bag," Kir said, now extremely keen to know what Aln-Mai had planned. Her left ear flicked, betraying her interest.

Aln-Mai walked outside, stepping into the bright mid-afternoon sunlight. He scanned the skies for a moment, then cupped his hands and gave a long, shrieking call. Almost instantly, a figure detached itself from the upper trees surrounding the temple and streaked toward Aln-Mai. Kir recognized the figure; it was the bird-being, Turro, whom she had met several days before.

Turro alighted in front of Aln-Mai, glancing at Kir then back at him.

"What is it, Tek?" Turro asked, and Kir wondered who he was talking to.

"Want to tag along? I've got to find some mynocks for clothing material," Aln-Mai said, "and why do you insist on calling me Tek?"

Turro ruffled his feathers, a twinkle in his eye. "Just my nickname for you, Aln-Mai. One less syllable, too." Kir realized that 'Tek' must be a shortened version of Aln-Mai's last name, Tekmi.

"Sharpened your talons recently?" Aln-Mai asked.

"Just this morning. I also happen to know of a cave near here. Follow me," Turro said, before taking flight and circling upward.

"Try to keep up; Turro's going to go pretty fast," Aln-Mai said, holding his lightsaber so it wouldn't fall off. He began to jog, Kir keeping pace easily. A bird-like call, similar to the one Aln-Mai had made, echoed down through the canopy, and Kir spotted a flying form through the leafy ceiling.

"Here we go!" Aln-Mai said, beginning to sprint away, obviously using the Force to aid his speed. Kir abandoned all pretense of propriety and dropped to all fours, hoping that neither Aln-Mai nor Turro knew that it was somewhat childish within her culture to be seen racing thus. She began to leap after Aln-Mai, realizing that she could keep pace without too much difficulty.

Aln-Mai continued to run through the dense forest, making surprising jumps over fallen trees and thick undergrowth. Kir leaped over them as well, digging her claws into the wood and launching herself forward. She ran slightly behind Aln-Mai, marking where he was going so she wouldn't fall behind.

The bird-like calling would echo through the trees ever so often, and Aln-Mai would change direction, heading toward the noise. Kir continued to follow him, half-wondering to herself if Aln-Mai did this every day when he went for a run.

Minutes later, Aln-Mai began to slow down slightly, and the calls grew different in their pitch. Kir surmised that they must be getting closer to the cave that Turro had mentioned.

Aln-Mai pushed his way through a large thicket, and emerging on the other side, Kir spotted Turro standing in front of an ominous black hole in a rock face, leading into the side of what appeared to be a small mountain.

"Okay, just remember, we only need two or three. Let's try not to attract the whole flock," Aln-Mai said, igniting one end of his lightsaber and going first into the cave.

Kir followed uncertainly, Turro bringing up the rear. She reached into her bag and found the hilt of her ornamental dagger, grasping it tightly. Turro walked up next to her, fidgeting slightly.

"Um...about the other day...sorry that I startled you," Turro mumbled, looking at the ground as he spoke. His speech was musical and lilting, Kir noticed for the first time, and he tended to whistle on 's'.

"There was no lasting harm done to me, and Aln-Mai was not upset about his book," Kir replied, still watching her surroundings, trying to peer through the darkness by the light of Aln-Mai's saber.

"What exactly are we doing?" Kir asked Turro, glancing at him, the fur on her tail beginning to fluff as her senses went on full alert.

"We're hunting mynocks," Turro said. "They're carnivores mostly, but they'll eat just about anything, including each other and even industrial material."

"Why are we hunting them?" Kir asked, looking around again.

"The fabric of their wings make excellent material for clothing, and if you condition it, it will make a rather good belt or other binding," Turro explained. "It's used a lot by students for that purpose."

"So what do you use the rest of the animal for?" Kir asked.

"You don't. You sever the wings and leave the rest of it. The other mynocks will eat it," Turro said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Kir's ears went back; she was repulsed. "That's disgusting!" she said, lashing her tail.

"Well, my sympathy for them is limited, since they'll eat _you_ if they get the chance," Turro said.

Kir wasn't paying much attention to where she was going, and she bumped into Aln-Mai's back.

"We're surrounded," Aln-Mai said, holding his lightsaber low and ready to strike.

"I was afraid you'd say that," Turro said, lowering into a defensive crouch, spreading his wings slightly.

Kir peered through the darkness, averting her eyes from Aln-Mai's lightsaber. Her pupils expanded, and suddenly she could see hundreds of winged creatures dotting the walls. She tightened her grip on her dagger, the hackles on her neck rising.

"Turro, grab one for Kir, she'll get its wings. I'll get another. Hopefully we can leave before the scent of blood gets them all going," Aln-Mai said, bracing himself. He spared just one moment to catch half a breath… "Now," he said, and both he and Turro made sharp movements with their hands.

Two of the creatures detached themselves from the wall, both obviously attempting to return to their perches but being pulled through the air by an invisible force.

As soon as the first one was within reach, Aln-Mai swung his lightsaber up and severed both wings from the creature in one swift white-arched movement. The creature dropped to the earth, and a purplish blood began to ooze where Aln-Mai had cut it. He deactivated his lightsaber and quickly gathered up the wings.

The second mynock landed right in front of Kir, and was pinned to the ground by Turro's talons, it's wings outstretched. Kir quickly placed her knife under the wing joint where it joined the body and sliced it in two.

She quickly severed the other, and Turro picked up the two wings, folding them and handing them to Aln-Mai, who placed them in a cloth wrapping that he had brought with him.

"Let's get out of here," Aln-Mai said, pointing the way back to the speck of light that was the exit of the cave. Kir began to walk towards the light, but a flurry of wings made her stop in her tracks, hackles rising further.

"Go!" Aln-Mai said, tossing the cloth wrapped bundle to Turro and re-igniting his lightsaber. He swung up above himself, slicing a descending mynock in half. Kir could see dozens of mynocks detaching themselves from the walls, dive-bombing the trio and emitting shrieks as they were cut down.

Kir slashed at a mynock as she ran, severing one wing and causing to drop to the ground. Turro snatched up the wing and continued to run, using the Force to propel creatures backward from him. The cave was too enclosed for him to take to the air, but he managed to sprint all the same toward the exit.

Kir heard Aln-Mai cry out and looked over her shoulder to see Aln-Mai's lightsaber go skittering away across the cave floor, a mynock attached to his arm. Aln-Mai was beating his free hand against the head of the creature, attempting to dislodge it.

"Aln-Mai!" Kir cried in dismay, turning to run back and assist him. She stooped and grabbed his lightsaber as she ran, fumbling for the power stud.

Aln-Mai grunted, and with an enormous effort, he yanked the mynock's head off of his forearm. There was blood soaking his tunic, and it was shredded where the mynock had bitten him. With a colossal push from the Force, he sent the mynock and a dozen others soaring backwards. Aln-Mai clutched his forearm to his chest, continuing to run for the cave exit. Kir pivoted and also ran, having abandoned her attempt to wield Aln-Mai's lightsaber.

"Turro!" Aln-Mai yelled, an unspoken command in his voice. Kir felt a distinct oppressive force building up, the air literally crackling with the power of it. Kir could see Turro standing at the exit, holding both arms out. Just as Kir and Aln-Mai ran past him, there was a tremendous shock wave of pressure, and all the mynocks that had been pursuing Kir and Aln-Mai were hurled forcefully back into the darkness of the cave.

"Let's keep moving!" Aln-Mai said, still holding his bloody forearm. He turned and plunged into the jungle, still running as if the mynocks were pursuing him. Kir again dropped to all fours, placing Aln-Mai's lightsaber in her teeth before following him. Turro picked up the bundle of mynock wings, grasping them in his talons before lifting himself into the air with powerful strokes of his wings.

They ran for several minutes, Turro keeping pace far overhead. The sun dipped low on the horizon, staining the sky a crimson red. When Aln-Mai finally slowed and stopped in a small clearing, he was thoroughly out of breath, and although Kir would not have admitted it, she could not have kept up for much longer.

Turro landed gently next to Aln-Mai, the wrapped bundle dropping to the ground. He went over to Aln-Mai, a stern expression on his face.

"All right, Mr. Heroics, let's have a look," he said.

"Why did we run when they were not chasing us?" Kir asked, having removed Aln-Mai's lightsaber from her jaws.

"Because mynocks are nocturnal. If we stayed next to that cave, we would have been ambushed again. It's not too early at night for them to decide to hunt down an intruder," Aln-Mai said.

Kir watched as Aln-Mai uncovered his forearm. There was a ring of tooth marks on his arm, and the flesh as well as the tunic had been ripped apart by the mynock's bite.

"I have some bandages in my bag," Kir offered.

Aln-Mai shook his head as Turro closed his eyes, passing his hands over Aln-Mai's wound. There was a look of intense concentration on his face, and Kir could feel the Force around her being drawn and directed.

The bite-shaped wound on Aln-Mai's arm slowly stopped bleeding, and to Kir's astonishment, the skin began to close, slowly re-knitting before her very eyes. Both ears perked forward as she watched the wound slowly vanish, leaving nothing but a mangled tunic as evidence of the attack. Turro opened his eyes, and seeing Aln-Mai's healed arm, nodded in satisfaction. Aln-Mai grasped Turro's arm, a silent gesture of thanks.

"How is that possible?" Kir asked.

"Turro has studied the Force in relation to living beings quite extensively. He's learned how to use the Force to mend wounds," Aln-Mai explained, picking up the bundle of wings.

"Let's get back to the temple. Master Skywalker will give us all a reprimand if we're not back before dark," Aln-Mai said, taking his lightsaber from Kir and clipping it on his belt again. The light had all but disappeared from the sky, and Kir knew that they had precious little time to return to the Academy.

They ran as fast as they possibly could, Turro leading the way as he had done before. When they finally broke through the jungle foliage surrounding the Jedi Temple, Master Skywalker was standing at the entrance, his arms folded, a look of knowing on his face.

"Master Skywalker!" Aln-Mai said, obviously trying to explain the situation. "We had gone to see if..."

The Jedi Master held up a hand. "I don't need to hear about your little adventure with the mynocks right now, Aln-Mai. Just go inside. You too, Kir."

Aln-Mai nodded glumly and trooped into the temple, a look of dejection on his face.

"Will you be punished for this?" Kir asked, secretly wondering if there be any consequences for her.

"No, but he'll probably scold me," Aln-Mai said, turning a corner.

"What about Turro?" Kir asked.

"He gets in and out of the temple from the upper levels...Master Skywalker probably knows that he was with us. I imagine that he'll talk to Turro as well."

"At least you obtained what you set out to get," Kir pointed out.

"Yeah..." Aln-Mai said half-heartedly. "If there's any leftover material after I cure it, I'll give it to you, or Turro can have it, if you don't want it."

"Why are you so depressed?" Kir asked, whiskers quivering in mild irritation.

"Because, I want Master Skywalker to think of me as a responsible person, and this little adventure certainly won't have that effect on him," Aln-Mai said, finally reaching the area the housed the students.

"Well, good night," he said as he opened the door to his room, his manner still unhappy.

"Good night, Aln-Mai," Kir said, her tail looping around his wrist in an unconscious gesture of reassuring. He gave her the tiniest of smiles, then let the door close behind him as he entered his quarters.

Kir walked down the halls to her room, pondering the recent events of the last few days. As she thought about it, she could not quench the feeling that she was poised upon the brink of one of the most exciting and challenging times of her life.

* * *

A/N: Well, it has definitely been a while since we last posted, but this chapter will hopefully tally well with the previous ones. Tell us what you think! 


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